The Order of the Heaven's Hundred Heroes (Ukrainian: Орден Героїв Небесної Сотні) is an order of Ukraine presented for civil courage, patriotism and the defense of the constitutional principles of democracy, human rights and freedom; humanitarian, social and charitable activities; selfless service to the Ukrainian people during the Euromaidan-protests; as well as any events related to the protection of the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.[1][2][3]

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The order was established on 1 July 2014 when the Verkhovna Rada (the parliament of Ukraine) adopted the Law “On amendments to article 7 of the Law of Ukraine “On National Awards of Ukraine”.[5] On 26 June 2014, Ukrainian PresidentPetro Poroshenko first proposed to parliament to amend the law on government awards by introducing the Order of the Heroes of the Heaven's Hundred.[6]

1.
Ukraine
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Ukraine is currently in territorial dispute with Russia over the Crimean Peninsula which Russia annexed in 2014 but which Ukraine and most of the international community recognise as Ukrainian. Including Crimea, Ukraine has an area of 603,628 km2, making it the largest country entirely within Europe and it has a population of about 42.5 million, making it the 32nd most populous country in the world. The territory of modern Ukraine has been inhabited since 32,000 BC, during the Middle Ages, the area was a key centre of East Slavic culture, with the powerful state of Kievan Rus forming the basis of Ukrainian identity. Following its fragmentation in the 13th century, the territory was contested, ruled and divided by a variety of powers, including Lithuania, Poland, the Ottoman Empire, Austria-Hungary, and Russia. A Cossack republic emerged and prospered during the 17th and 18th centuries, two brief periods of independence occurred during the 20th century, once near the end of World War I and another during World War II. Before its independence, Ukraine was typically referred to in English as The Ukraine, following independence, Ukraine declared itself a neutral state. Nonetheless it formed a limited partnership with the Russian Federation and other CIS countries. In the 2000s, the government began leaning towards NATO, and it was later agreed that the question of joining NATO should be answered by a national referendum at some point in the future. Former President Viktor Yanukovych considered the current level of co-operation between Ukraine and NATO sufficient, and was against Ukraine joining NATO and these events formed the background for the annexation of Crimea by Russia in March 2014, and the War in Donbass in April 2014. On 1 January 2016, Ukraine applied the economic part of the Deep, Ukraine has long been a global breadbasket because of its extensive, fertile farmlands and is one of the worlds largest grain exporters. The diversified economy of Ukraine includes a heavy industry sector, particularly in aerospace. Ukraine is a republic under a semi-presidential system with separate powers, legislative, executive. Its capital and largest city is Kiev, taking into account reserves and paramilitary personnel, Ukraine maintains the second-largest military in Europe after that of Russia. Ukrainian is the language and its alphabet is Cyrillic. The dominant religion in the country is Eastern Orthodoxy, which has strongly influenced Ukrainian architecture, literature, there are different hypotheses as to the etymology of the name Ukraine. According to the older and most widespread hypothesis, it means borderland, while more recently some studies claim a different meaning, homeland or region. The Ukraine now implies disregard for the sovereignty, according to U. S. ambassador William Taylor. Neanderthal settlement in Ukraine is seen in the Molodova archaeological sites include a mammoth bone dwelling

2.
Euromaidan
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The scope of the protests expanded, with many calls for the resignation of President Viktor Yanukovych and his government. The protests led to the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, the situation escalated after the violent dispersal of protesters on 30 November, leading to many more protesters joining. By 25 January 2014, the protests had been fueled by the perception of government corruption, abuse of power. Transparency International named President Yanukovych as the top example of corruption in the world, Police and protesters fired live and rubber ammunition across multiple locations in Kiev. Riot police advanced towards Maiden and clashed with protesters but did not fully occupy it, fighting continued the following days which saw the vast majority of casualties. In connection with the events of February 18–20, Yanukovych was forced to make concessions to the opposition to end the bloodshed in Kiev, the Agreement on settlement of political crisis in Ukraine was signed by Vitaly Klitschko, Arseny Yatsenyuk, Oleh Tyahnybok. Vladimir Lukin, representing Russia, refused to sign the agreement, in late February 2014, Yanukovych and many other high government officials fled the country. Protesters gained control of the administration and Yanukovychs private estate. Subsequently, the parliament removed Yanukovych from office, replaced the government with a pro-European one, events in Kiev were soon followed by the Crimean crisis and pro-Russian unrest in Eastern Ukraine. On 24 November 2013, clashes between protesters and police began, Police used tear gas and batons. Protesters also used gas and some fire crackers. After a few days of demonstrations an increasing number of university students joined the protests, the Euromaidan has been characterised as an event of major political symbolism for the European Union itself, particularly as the largest ever pro-European rally in history. The protests continued despite heavy presence, regularly sub-freezing temperatures. In the preceding weeks, protest attendance had fluctuated from 50,000 to 200,000 during organised rallies, violent riots took place 1 December and 19 January through 25 January in response to police brutality and government repression. Starting 23 January, several Western Ukrainian Oblast Governor buildings and regional councils were occupied in a revolt by Euromaidan activists. According to journalist Lecia Bushak writing in the 18 February 2014 issue of Newsweek magazine, Yanukovych then fled to Ukraines second largest city of Kharkiv, refusing to recognise the parliaments decisions. The parliament assigned early elections for May 2014, the term Euromaidan was initially used as a hashtag on Twitter. A Twitter account named Euromaidan was created on the first day of the protests and it soon became popular in the international media

3.
Ukrainian language
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Ukrainian /juːˈkreɪniən/ is an East Slavic language. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic script, historical linguists trace the origin of the Ukrainian language to the Old East Slavic of the early medieval state of Kievan Rus. After the fall of the Kievan Rus as well as the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, the Modern Ukrainian language has been in common use since the late 17th century, associated with the establishment of the Cossack Hetmanate. From 1804 until the Russian Revolution, the Ukrainian language was banned from schools in the Russian Empire and it has always maintained a sufficient base in Western Ukraine, where the language was never banned, in its folklore songs, itinerant musicians, and prominent authors. The Ukrainian language retains a degree of intelligibility with Belarusian and Russian. The first theory of the origin of Ukrainian language was suggested in Imperial Russia in the middle of the 18th century by Mikhail Lomonosov and this theory posits the existence of a common language spoken by all East Slavic people in the time of the Rus. Another point of view developed during the 19th and 20th centuries by linguists of Imperial Russia, like Lomonosov, they assumed the existence of a common language spoken by East Slavs in the past. This general point of view is the most accepted amongst academics worldwide, the supporters of this theory disagree, however, about the time when the different languages were formed. Soviet scholars set the divergence between Ukrainian and Russian only at time periods. During the time of the incorporation of Ruthenia into the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and this point of view is, however, at variance with some historical data. In fact, several East Slavic tribes, such as Polans, Drevlyans, Severians, Dulebes, White Croats, Tiverians, notably, some Ukrainian features were recognizable in the southern dialects of Old East Slavic as far back as the language can be documented. In contrast, Ahatanhel Krymsky and Alexei Shakhmatov assumed the existence of the spoken language of Eastern Slavs only in prehistoric times. According to their point of view, the diversification of the Old East Slavic language took place in the 8th or early 9th century, Ukrainian linguist Stepan Smal-Stotsky went even further, denying the existence of a common Old East Slavic language at any time in the past. Similar points of view were shared by Yevhen Tymchenko, Vsevolod Hantsov, Olena Kurylo, Ivan Ohienko, according to this theory, the dialects of East Slavic tribes evolved gradually from the common Proto-Slavic language without any intermediate stages during the 6th through 9th centuries. The Ukrainian language was formed by convergence of tribal dialects, mostly due to a migration of the population within the territory of todays Ukraine in later historical periods. This point of view was supported by George Shevelovs phonological studies. During the 13th century, when German settlers were invited to Ukraine by the princes of Galicia-Vollhynia and their influence would continue under Poland not only through German colonists but also through the Yiddish-speaking Jews. Often such words involve trade or handicrafts, examples of words of German or Yiddish origin spoken in Ukraine include dakh, rura, rynok, kushnir, and majster

4.
Order (honour)
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Modern national orders and orders of merit developed in the 19th century, emerging out of the culture of chivalric orders of the Middle Ages. The modern distinction between orders and decorations is somewhat vague, except that most historic chivalric orders imply a membership in a group, in a few exclusive European orders, membership is or was also limited in number. Orders often come in multiple classes, including knights and dames in imitation of the chivalric orders. They were essentially courtly in nature, characterised by close personal relations between the members and the orders sovereign. By the time of the Renaissance, most European monarchs had acquired an existing order of chivalry, or created new ones of their own, to reward loyal civilian. Such orders remained out of reach to the public, however. In the 18th century, these ideas gradually changed and the orders developed from honourable societies to visible honours, an example of this gradual development can be seen in two orders founded by Maria Theresa of Austria. Still today many dynastic orders are granted by royal families to worthy individuals for service, in 1802 Napoleon created the Légion dhonneur, which could be awarded to any person, regardless of status, for bravery in combat or for 20 years of distinguished service. While still retaining many trappings of an order of chivalry, it was the first modern order of merit and is still Frances highest award today. Curiously, orders of merit based on the French Legion of Honour typically retain five classes in accordance with habits of chivalric orders. In communist countries, orders of merit usually come in one to three grades, with only a badge worn with or without a ribbon on the chest, an example of a communist order of merit was the one-class Order of Lenin of the Soviet Union. Unlike Western orders, however, communist orders could be awarded more than once to an individual, after the collapse of the Soviet bloc, most Eastern European countries reverted to the Western-style orders originally established before the rise of communism. Today many countries have some form of order of merit or national decorations, both Thailands Order of the White Elephant and Japans Order of the Rising Sun are over 100 years old. In Canada and some Commonwealth Realms, the Order of Merit is the highest civilian honour, Canada has the Order of Canada and provincial orders such as the Order of Nova Scotia. Australia has the Order of Australia, and New Zealand awards the Order of New Zealand, the Order of Mapungubwe is the highest honour in South Africa, while the Orders of Luthuli, and the Baobab exist alongside other decorations. The United States awards the Medal of Honor to members of its military for acts of valour, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, switzerland does not award any orders. Article 12 of the 1848 Swiss Constitution prohibited the acceptance of honours, the current Constitution of 1999 has no specific prohibition, but a federal statute effectively continues the prohibition by barring holders of foreign orders from holding public office. In 1974 the Cabinet of Sweden passed a regulation forbidding the Monarch of Sweden from awarding membership in orders to Swedish citizens

5.
List of people killed during Euromaidan
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This is the list of people killed during Euromaidan events taking place in the fall and winter of 2013–2014. The list contains only confirmed deaths of Euromaidan participants, Ukrainian policemen, there are currently near 130 identified deaths, most of them were civilian protesters. 18 police officers were killed during the clashes. Ukrainian sources often refer to the protesters as the Heavenly Hundred. On 21 February 2014, Verkhovna Rada recognized the perished protesters of Euromaidan as victims, on 21 November 2014 by Petro Poroshenkos decree the perished Ukrainian protesters of Euromaidan were posthumously awarded the Hero of Ukraine title. Three non-Ukrainian citizens killed in the Euromaidan events were each awarded the title Knight of the Order of the Heavens Hundred Heroes. 2015 the Day of the Heavenly Hundred Heroes was celebrated on 20 February to commemorate the deaths, the first deaths occurred on Unity Day,22 January 2014, during riots on Hrushevskoho Street in Kiev, where 3 Euromaidan activists were shot dead. On the same day, a body of another Euromaidan activist was found on the outskirts of the city, he was kidnapped a day before with Ihor Lutsenko. These were the first victims to die in demonstrations in Ukraine since gaining independence in 1991. The deaths caused widespread protests across the country and he stated that the shooting of protesters was a provocation by extremist forces aimed at escalating violence. Party of Regions MP Arsen Klinchayev stated during a service in Luhansk for those killed on 22 January by police. Nobody has the right to use force against police officers. And then they have their sticks, then stones, then something else, the police have the right to defend their lives. So I think its right that these four people were killed, moreover, I believe that you need to be stricter. 5 More deaths in connection with Euromaidan occurred between 25 January and 13 February, the second active phase started February 18. After a brief truce on 19 February, the clashes renewed 20 February,20 February was the bloodiest day of the clashes with at least 21 anti-government protesters being killed. The final death toll from these clashes in late February was 103 protesters and 13 police, according to the Deputy Prosecutor General of Ukraine Oleh Zalisko in February 201467 people were killed in Kievs city centre,184 sustained gunshot wounds and over 750 suffered bodily injuries. At least 17 people died from previously received wounds and injuries since then, Maidan participants wished last farewell to the perished protesters who they named the Heavenly Hundred

6.
Verkhovna Rada
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The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, often simply Verkhovna Rada or just Rada, is the unicameral parliament of Ukraine. The Verkhovna Rada is composed of 450 deputies, who are presided over by a chairman, the Verkhovna Rada meets in the Verkhovna Rada building in Ukraines capital Kiev. The current parliament is the eighth convocation, in elections to the Verkhovna Rada, a mixed voting system is used. 50% of seats are distributed under party lists with a 5% election threshold, the method of 50/50 mixed elections was used in the 2002 and 2012 elections, however, in 2006 and 2007, the elections were held under a proportional system only. The name Rada means council, rede and it originated in Kievan Rus, and then represented a boyar and higher clergy council. It was also used by Dnieper Cossacks in the 17th and 18th centuries for the meetings where major decisions were made and this name was later used by the Ukrainian Peoples Republic between March 17,1917 and April 29,1918. As well as West Ukrainian Peoples Republic and the Ukrainian government in exile where it was known as UNRada, Verkhovna, is the feminine form of the adjective верховне meaning supreme. It is derived from the Ukrainian word верх meaning top, another name used less often is the Parliament of Ukraine. The All-Ukrainian Congress of Soviets had already renamed the Supreme Council in 1927. The Congress of Soviets was initiated by the Central Executive Committee of Ukraine, the last chairman of the committee was Hryhoriy Petrovsky. The first elections to the Supreme Council of the Ukrainian SSR took place on June 26,1938, the first session of the parliament took place in Kiev on July 25 through 28,1938. The first Chairman of the council was Mykhailo Burmystenko who later died during World War II, in 1938, a presidium of the council was created that was led by Leonid Korniyets. During the war the presidium was evacuated to the city of Saratov in the Russian SFSR, on June 29,1943, the presidium issued an order postponing elections for the new convocation for one year while extending the first convocation. On January 8,1944, the Cabinet of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR in agreement with the Communist Party decided to relocate the Presidium of the Supreme Council from Kharkiv to Kiev, new elections were scheduled for February 9,1947 for the Council. Until 24 August 1991 Verkhovna Rada kept the name Supreme Council of the Ukrainian SSR, the first partially free elections to the Verkhovna Rada and local councils of peoples deputies were held on 4 March 1990. m. At the time, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada was Leonid Kravchuk, the Act of Ukrainian Independence was overwhelmingly supported in a national referendum held on December 1,1991. On September 12,1991 the parliament adopted the law On Legal Succession of Ukraine, thus, the VR became the Supreme Council of Ukraine. The Constitution of Ukraine was adopted by the convocation of the Verkhovna Rada on June 28,1996

7.
Ukrainian President
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The president of Ukraine is the Ukrainian head of state. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations, the president is directly elected by the citizens of Ukraine for a five-year term of office, limited to two terms consecutively. The presidents official residence is the Mariyinsky Palace, located in the Pechersk district of the capital Kyiv, other official residences include the House with Chimaeras and the House of the Weeping Widow, which are used for official visits by foreign representatives. Since the offices establishment on 5 July 1991, there have been five presidents of Ukraine, Leonid Kravchuk was the inaugural president, serving three years from 1991 until his resignation in 1994. Leonid Kuchma was the president to have served two consecutive terms in office. Oleksandr Turchynov was the acting president in Ukraines modern history. On 18 June 2015, Yanukovych was officially deprived of the title of president of Ukraine, the current president is Petro Poroshenko who took the oath of office on 7 June 2014. The prime minister serves as the head of government, a role filled by Volodymyr Groysman who was appointed to the position in April 2016. As with the separation of powers, the president has checks on the authority of parliament, for instance, any law passed by the parliament can be vetoed by the president, however, parliament can override his veto with a 2/3 constitutional majority vote. The president has limited authority to disband the Verkhovna Rada, and nominates candidates for the Minister of Foreign Affairs, six out of eighteen of the Constitutional Court judges are appointed by the president. Decisions of the president are subject to review by Ukraines courts with the Constitutional Court having the sole authority, while in office, the president enjoys the right of immunity. By-passing local governments is a practice in Ukraine. With the proclamation of the last universal of the UPR dated 25 January 1918 due to a military aggression, the Central Rada of the UPR proclaimed its independence from the Russia. On 29 April 1918, the Rada elected Mykhailo Hrushevskyi as the first President of the Central Rada of the Ukrainian Peoples Republic, although a rather widespread misconception, the state leadership position title varied and none of them had an official presidential title. In November of the year the directorate government of the UPR was established as the opposition movement to the Skoropadskys regime. Although really the Directorate was the governing body until the new Ukrainian Constituent Assembly would elect its president. Symon Petliura assumed the representation of the state after Vynnychenkos resignation on 11 February 1919, after the Soviet offensive in 1920 and brought control of the Ukrainian territory under the Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic, the Ukrainian Peoples Republic was forced into exile. Upon the assassination of Petliura, the control over the affairs were transferred to the former Prime Minister Andriy Livytskyi who in 1948 created the office of the President of Ukraine

8.
Petro Poroshenko
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Petro Oleksiyovych Poroshenko is the fifth and current President of Ukraine, in office since 2014. He served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2008 to 2011, from 2008 until 2013, Poroshenko headed the Council of Ukraines National Bank. Outside government, Poroshenko has been a prominent oligarch with a career in acquiring and building assets. His most recognized ownerships are Roshen, the confectionery company which has earned him the nickname of Chocolate King, and a TV channel 5 kanal. He was elected president on 10 May 2014, capturing more than 54% of the vote in the first round, thereby winning outright, Poroshenko was born in the city of Bolhrad, in Odessa Oblast, on 26 September 1965. He also spent his childhood and youth in Bendery, where his father Oleksiy was heading a machine building plant. In his youth, Poroshenko practiced judo and sambo, and was Candidate for Master of Sport of the USSR, despite good grades he was not awarded the normal gold medal at graduation, and on his report card he was given a C for his behavior. After getting into a fight with four Soviet Army cadets at the military commissariat, in 1989, Poroshenko graduated, having started studying in 1982, with a degree in economics from the international relations and law department at the Kiev State University. At this university he was friends with Mikheil Saakashvili who he in May 2015 would appoint as Governor of Odessa Oblast, in 1984 Poroshenko married a medical student, Maryna Perevedentseva. Their first son, Oleksiy, was born in 1985, from 1989 to 1992 Poroshenko was an assistant at the universitys international economic relations department. At the same time, he was deputy director of the Republic Union of Small Businesses and Entrepreneurs, Poroshenkos brother, Mykhailo, older by eight years, died in a 1997 car accident under mysterious circumstances. His business success in the confectionery industry earned him the nickname Chocolate King, Poroshenkos business empire also includes several car and bus plants, Kuznya na Rybalskomu shipyard, the 5 Kanal television channel, as well as other businesses in Ukraine. According to Poroshenko since becoming President of Ukraine he has relinquished the management of his businesses, in March 2012, Forbes placed him on the Forbes list of billionaires at 1, 153rd place, with $1 billion. As of May 2015, Poroshenkos net worth was about $720 million, losing 25 percent profit ever since Russias ban of Roshen products and the state of the Ukrainian economy. The estimate of his assets was set at 979 million US dollars, a 20% growth, the article noted that Poroshenko remained one of the only two European leaders who owned a business empire of such scale, with Silvio Berlusconi being the other one. A number of businesses were part of the Ukrprominvest which Poroshenko headed in 1993–1998. The investment group was dissolved in April 2012, Poroshenko has stated that upon beginning his political activity he passed on his holdings to a trust fund. Bogdan group Roshen group 5 Kanal television channel Kuznya na Rybalskomu shipyard Poroshenko first won a seat in the Verkhovna Rada in 1998 for the 12th single-mandate constituency

9.
Lviv
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Lviv, the largest city in western Ukraine and the seventh largest city in the country overall, is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine. Named in honor of the Leo, the eldest son of Rus King Daniel of Galicia. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia from 1272 to 1349, from 1434, it was the regional capital of the Ruthenian Voivodeship in the Kingdom of Poland and was known as Lwów. In 1772, after the First partition of Poland, the city became the capital of the Habsburg Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria and was renamed to Lemberg, in 1918 in a short time was the capital of the West Ukrainian Peoples Republic. Between the wars, the city was again as Lwów and was the centre of the Lwów Voivodeship in the Second Polish Republic. After World War II, it part of the Soviet Union. Administratively, Lviv serves as the center of Lviv Oblast and has the status of city of oblast significance. Lviv was the centre of the region of Galicia. The historical heart of the city, with its old buildings and cobblestone streets, survived Soviet, the city has many industries and institutions of higher education such as Lviv University and Lviv Polytechnic. Lviv is also the home of many cultural institutions, including a philharmonic orchestra. The historic city centre is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, Lviv celebrated its 750th anniversary with a son et lumière in the center of the city in September 2006. Lviv is located on the edge of the Roztochia Upland, approximately 70 kilometers from the Polish border and 160 kilometers from the eastern Carpathian Mountains, the average altitude of Lviv is 296 meters above sea level. Its highest point is the Vysokyi Zamok,409 meters above sea level and this castle has a commanding view of the historic city centre with its distinctive green-domed churches and intricate architecture. The old walled city was at the foothills of the High Castle on the banks of the River Poltva, in the 13th century, the river was used to transport goods. Lvivs climate is continental with cold winters and mild summers. The average temperatures are −3.1 °C in January and 18.3 °C in July, the average annual rainfall is 745 mm with the maximum being in summer. Lviv approximately receives 1,804 hours of sunshine annually, archaeologists have demonstrated that the Lviv area was settled by the 5th century. The area between the Castle Hill and the river Poltva was continuously settled since the 9th century, in 1977 it was discovered that the Orthodox church of St. Nicholas had been built on a previously functioning cemetery

10.
Belarus
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Its capital and most populous city is Minsk. Over 40% of its 207,600 square kilometres is forested and its strongest economic sectors are service industries and manufacturing. In the aftermath of the 1917 Russian Revolution, Belarus declared independence as the Belarusian Peoples Republic, the Socialist Soviet Republic of Byelorussia became a founding constituent republic of the Soviet Union in 1922 and was renamed as the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. Belarus lost almost half of its territory to Poland after the Polish–Soviet War of 1919–1921, during WWII, military operations devastated Belarus, which lost about a third of its population and more than half of its economic resources. The republic was redeveloped in the post-war years, in 1945 the Byelorussian SSR became a founding member of the United Nations, along with the Soviet Union and the Ukrainian SSR. The parliament of the declared the sovereignty of Belarus on 27 July 1990. Alexander Lukashenko has served as the president since 1994. Belarus has been labeled Europes last dictatorship by some Western journalists, Lukashenko continued a number of Soviet-era policies, such as state ownership of large sections of the economy. Though not directly espousing communism like the five remaining communist countries of China, Cuba, Laos, Vietnam and North Korea, in 2000 Belarus and Russia signed a treaty for greater cooperation, with some hints of forming a Union State. Over 70% of Belaruss population of 9.49 million resides in urban areas, more than 80% of the population is ethnic Belarusian, with sizable minorities of Russians, Poles and Ukrainians. Since a referendum in 1995, the country has had two official languages, Belarusian and Russian, the Constitution of Belarus does not declare any official religion, although the primary religion in the country is Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Belarus is the only European country to retain capital punishment in both law and practice, the name Belarus is closely related with the term Belaya Rus, i. e. White Rus. There are several claims to the origin of the name White Rus, an alternate explanation for the name comments on the white clothing worn by the local Slavic population. A third theory suggests that the old Rus lands that were not conquered by the Tatars had been referred to as white, other sources claim that, before 1267, the land not conquered by the Mongols was considered White Rus. The name Rus is often conflated with its Latin forms Russia and Ruthenia, in some languages, including German and Dutch, the country is generally called White Russia to this day. The Latin term Alba Russia was used again by Pope Pius VI in 1783 to recognize the Society of Jesus there, exclaiming Approbo Societatem Jesu in Alba Russia degentem, approbo, approbo. The first known use of White Russia to refer to Belarus was in the century by Englishman Sir Jerome Horsey. During the 17th century, the Russian tsars used White Rus to describe the lands added from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

11.
Georgia (country)
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Georgia is a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. The capital and largest city is Tbilisi, Georgia covers a territory of 69,700 square kilometres, and its 2016 population is about 3.72 million. Georgia is a unitary, semi-presidential republic, with the government elected through a representative democracy, during the classical era, several independent kingdoms became established in what is now Georgia. The kingdoms of Colchis and Iberia adopted Christianity in the early 4th century, a unified Kingdom of Georgia reached the peak of its political and economic strength during the reign of King David IV and Queen Tamar in the 12th and early 13th centuries. Thereafter the kingdom declined and eventually disintegrated under hegemony of various powers, including the Mongols, the Ottoman Empire. Russian rule over Georgia was eventually acknowledged in various treaties with Iran. Since the establishment of the modern Georgian republic in April 1991, post-communist Georgia suffered from civil, the countrys Western orientation soon led to the worsening of relations with Russia, culminating in the brief Russo-Georgian War in August 2008. Georgia is a member of the United Nations, the Council of Europe, and it contains two de facto independent regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which gained limited international recognition after the 2008 Russo-Georgian War. Georgia and a part of the international community consider the regions to be part of Georgias sovereign territory under Russian military occupation. Georgia probably stems from the Persian designation of the Georgians – gurğān, in the 11th and 12th centuries adapted via Syriac gurz-ān/gurz-iyān, starting with the Persian word gurğ/gurğān, the word was later adopted in numerous other languages, including Slavic and West European languages. This term itself might have established through the ancient Iranian appellation of the near-Caspian region. The self-designation used by ethnic Georgians is Kartvelebi, the medieval Georgian Chronicles present an eponymous ancestor of the Kartvelians, Kartlos, a great-grandson of Japheth. However, scholars agree that the word is derived from the Karts, the name Sakartvelo consists of two parts. Its root, kartvel-i, specifies an inhabitant of the core central-eastern Georgian region of Kartli, ancient Greeks and Romans referred to early western Georgians as Colchians and eastern Georgians as Iberians. Today the full, official name of the country is Georgia, before the 1995 constitution came into force the countrys name was the Republic of Georgia. The territory of modern-day Georgia was inhabited by Homo erectus since the Paleolithic Era, the proto-Georgian tribes first appear in written history in the 12th century BC. The earliest evidence of wine to date has found in Georgia. In fact, early metallurgy started in Georgia during the 6th millennium BC, the classical period saw the rise of a number of early Georgian states, the principal of which was Colchis in the west and Iberia in the east

12.
Ukrayinska Pravda
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Ukrayinska Pravda is a popular Ukrainian Internet newspaper, founded by Georgiy R. Gongadze in April,2000. The Ukrainian government has at times reportedly exerted pressure on the publication to restrict access to freedom of information, along with Hromadske TV and Center UA, Ukrayinska Pravda is part of the MediaHub Kyiv. The newspaper was often first to investigate and publish the material on corruption or unethical conduct of or related to Ukrainian politicians from all political camps, in December 2002 Ukrayinska Pravda was refused a press accreditation by the General Prosecutor of Ukraine Svyatoslav Piskun. Staff journalists routinely participate in public actions promoting democracy and press freedom in the country. Among regular bloggers at Ukrayinska Pravda are Anatoliy Hrytsenko, Ruslana Lyzhychko, Inna Bohoslovska, Tetyana Chornovol, Yuriy Lutsenko and many others

13.
Kyiv Post
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The Kyiv Post is Ukraines oldest English language newspaper. American Jed Sunden founded the Kyiv Post weekly newspaper on Oct.18,1995, the newspaper, which went online in 2002, serves Ukrainian and expatriate readers with a general interest mix of political, business and entertainment coverage. The staff is a team of mainly Ukrainian journalists, numbering 23 editorial team members as of December 2016, historically, the editorial policy has supported democracy, Western integration and free markets for Ukraine. The Kyiv Post has had two owners in its existence, Sunden and Mohammad Zahoor, Sundens KP Media sold the newspaper to British citizen Zahoor on July 28,2009. Zahoor owns the ISTIL Group and is a native of Pakistan, Zahoor publishes the newspaper through his Public Media company. In an interview with the Kyiv Post published on August 6,2009, Zahoor pledged to revive the newspaper, the first 16-page issue was put out by an editorial staff of two people. Sunden built the newspaper into an enterprise, one that served the needs of the expatriate community that then regarded Ukraine as a potential hotspot for investment. During Sundens tenure, he held to libertarian and anti-Communist views on the editorial and opinion pages and he said the policy is good for business and news. Sunden was controversial for allowing paid massage advertisements from women engaging in prostitution, after Zahoor bought the newspaper, he retained the entire editorial team. One of his first acts as publisher, however, was to eliminate the paid massage advertisements, Zahoor sustained the policy of editorial independence, with limited exceptions. While the newspaper was free to any candidate for the election. The Kyiv Post lost advertising and cut costs, but still ended the year in the black, in the last months under Sunden in 2009, the newspapers editorial staff shrunk to 12 members, its page count to 16 and its print distribution to 11,000 copies. Zahoor invested in journalists, increased distribution and improved newsprint and he boosted the page count—to 32 pages through much of 2010-2011, dropping back to 24 pages again through much of 2012-2013 and then to 16 pages for most of the last three years. The start of an affiliated organization, the Media Development Foundation. The Kyiv Post has had at least 15 chief editors since its first edition on October 18,1995, the longest-serving chief editor is Brian Bonner, an American citizen who became the editor in the summer of 1999 and returned on June 9,2008. Bonners tenure was interrupted briefly twice, the front-page story was published on April 15,2011. Bonners firing lasted only five days, after the staff went on strike in support of his decision to publish the article. On April 18 in Kyiv, a group of visiting U. S, the incident garnered international attention as a barometer of the state of freedom of the press in Ukraine

14.
Ukrainian crisis
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A prolonged crisis in Ukraine began on 21 November 2013, when then-president Viktor Yanukovych suspended preparations for the implementation of an association agreement with the European Union. This decision resulted in protests by its proponents, known as the Euromaidan. After months of protests, Yanukovych was ousted by the protesters on 22 February 2014. Following his ousting, unrest enveloped the largely Russophone eastern and southern regions of Ukraine, an ensuing political crisis and Russian military intervention in the Ukrainian autonomous region of Crimea resulted in the annexation of Crimea by Russia on 18 March 2014. Ukraine became gripped by unrest when President Viktor Yanukovych refused to sign an agreement with the European Union on 21 November 2013. An organised political movement known as Euromaidan demanded closer ties with the European Union, and this movement was ultimately successful, culminating in the February 2014 revolution, which removed Yanukovych and his government. Following flight of President Yanukovych on 23 February 2014, protests by pro-Russian and these were followed by demonstrations in cities across eastern and southern Ukraine, including Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, and Odessa. Starting on 26 February 2014, pro-Russian armed men began to take over the peninsula. Russia initially said that these militants, termed little green men in Ukraine, were local self-defence forces. However, they admitted that these were in fact Russian soldiers without insignias. By 27 February, the Crimean parliament building had been seized by Russian forces, Russian flags were raised over these buildings, and a self-declared pro-Russian government said that it would hold a referendum on independence from Ukraine. Following that internationally unrecognised referendum, which was held on 16 March 2014, prior to a change of the top leadership in August 2014, the separatists were largely led by Russian citizens. Russian paramilitaries are reported to make up from 15% to 80% of the combatants and these events followed the reported shelling of Ukrainian positions from the Russian side of the border over the course of the preceding month. Head of the Security Service of Ukraine Valentyn Nalyvaichenko said that the events of 22 August were an invasion by Russia of Ukraine. Western and Ukrainian officials described these events as an invasion of Ukraine by Russia. As a result of this, DPR and LPR insurgents regained much of the territory they had lost during the government military offensive. A deal to establish a ceasefire, called the Minsk Protocol, was signed on 5 September 2014, violations of the ceasefire were common. The ceasefire completely collapsed in January 2015, heavy fighting resumed across the conflict zone, including at Donetsk International Airport and Debaltseve

15.
Timeline of the Euromaidan
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The Euromaidan was a wave of demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, which began on the night of 21 November 2013 with very large public protests demanding closer European integration. The scope of the protests evolved over subsequent months, culminating in resignation of Azarovs government, protesters also have stated they joined because of the dispersal of protesters on 30 November and a will to change life in Ukraine. By 25 January 2014 the protests had been fueled by the perception of government corruption, abuse of power. Euromaidan started in the night of 21 November 2013 when up to 2,000 protesters gathered at Kievs Maidan Nezalezhnosti, the blog of Yuri Andreev on Korrespondent. net asked people to gather on Maidan Nezalezhnosti that day at 22,30. In the following days, the opposition and pro-EU parties led the protests, a larger rally took place on 24 November, when 50,000 to 200,000 people gathered on Kievs Maidan Nezalezhnosti. The pro-EU demonstrators carrying Ukrainian and EU flags chanted Ukraine is Europe, News agencies claimed this to be the largest protest since the Orange Revolution of 2004. After a small group of protesters attempted to storm the Government Building, protesters also used tear gas and some fire crackers. According to the General Prosecutors Office, more than 400 people were injured from 24 November to 13 December, on 25 November jailed former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko began a hunger strike in protest of President Yanukovychs reluctance to sign the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement. The same day the city of Kiev installed a heating tent at Maidan Nezalezhnosti, the same day it was reported that social media accounts of protesters were being hacked and disreputable messages being posted in place of rally news and commentary. On 26 and 27 November 2013 Lithuanian Parliament Speaker Loreta Graužinienė, musical acts like Ruslana put on performances for demonstrators on Maidan Nezalezhnosti. On 27 November it was reported that the Kharkiv Polytechnical Institute staff allegedly checked class attendance, in other universities, administrators forbade students from joining pro-EU protests, posting political commentary to social media networks, and wearing Ukraine-EU ribbons. According to Euronews the protesters in Kiev numbered ten thousand people, at noon of 28 November about 3,000 people gathered on Maidan Nezalezhnosti, no party symbols were reported, only Ukrainian flags and European Union flags. The crowd grew to 4,000 by the evening while it was again entertained by popular Ukrainian artists, on 29 November 2013, it became clear that Ukraine did not sign the Association Agreement at the Eastern Partnership Summit in Vilnius. The number of protesters in Kiev swelled to 10,000, in Lviv, protesters numbered some 20,000. As in Kiev the Lviv protesters locked hands in a human chain, Euronews reported that protesters in Kiev believed the rally should go on and were calling for the second Azarov Governments and President Viktor Yanukovychs resignation. Initially,35 people were injured as a result of the raid, including a Reuters cameraman. At 09,20 Berkut besieged the St. Michaels Golden-Domed Monastery where approximately 50 Euromaidan activists, including the injured, Minister of Internal Affairs Vitaliy Zakharchenko later apologized and claimed riot police abused their power and promised a thorough investigation. Via state television he added if there are calls for mass disturbances, in addition,7 policemen were also injured

16.
Domestic responses to the Euromaidan
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Below are the domestic responses to the Euromaidan. I could see very clearly. In his address to the Ukrainian people President Yanukovych stated that he is outraged by those events that took place at night at the Independence Square on 30 November. I condemn the actions that led to violent confrontation and suffering of people, I demand from the General Prosecutor urgently provide me and the Ukrainian society with results of immediate and impartial investigation for appropriate punishment, stated Yanukovych. Following the 30 November violence, Serhiy Lyovochkin, Chief of Staff of the Yanukovych administration, but President Yanukovych turned down his application for resignation and Levochkin continued his tasks. It doesnt matter if it is the representatives of the government, I am convinced that a bad peace is better than a good war, was also added. On 10 December President Yanukovych stated All responsibility rests with the incumbent authorities today and I always try to be impartial in my judgments. I am utterly opposed to coming to us and teach how we should live here, we have always had enough wisdom, political will and, if you want. On 19 December Yanukovych stated When we saw such an upsurge in society and this is the peoples aspiration for a better life. And he added Politicians, extremists, and various instigators started to gamble on this during this emotional outburst and we need to make conclusions from this all, and we are making them so as never to allow such cases in the near future. The Lord has given us this ordeal, and we should pass it with an open face, irrespective of the political affiliation, Ukrainians have demonstrated to each other and to the whole world their common responsibility for the destiny of the country. He added that Ukraine was continuing work over the Association Agreement with the European Union, number of awards were issued out on January 22,2014 by the President of Ukraine. If this is carried out within a framework, fine. In this case, we wont fool around, so its quite natural that when we made our announcement a significant number of people took to the streets demanding that the process of European integration be continued. This active involvement of our people proves again that, in general, on his Facebook page commenting on the events of November 30, he stated that he is deeply outraged and worried what happened at night at the Independence Square. Those details from various sides that I have at the moment, do not allow a conclusion, Who is responsible for this provocation. On December 1, Azarov claimed that the protesters were ignorant to the economics behind the decision to out of the EU Association Agreement. The next day Azarov referred to the protests as resembling a coup détat, on 3 December Prime Minister Mykola Azarov assured parliament that neither he nor President Viktor Yanukovych ordered the dispersal of the rally

17.
International reactions to the Euromaidan
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Below are the foreign reactions to the Euromaidan. Interfax-Ukraine reported on 9 December that staff of the European Union delegation were present at the rallies on Maidan Nezalezhnosti monitoring developments there, were sticking to that principle, and we do hope that all of the other countries that signed that document do the same. Rasmussen stated on 3 December I strongly condemn the use of police forces we have witnessed in Kyiv. I would expect all NATO partners, including Ukraine, to live up to democratic principles including freedom of assembly. The assembled ministers urge Ukraine, as the holder of the Chairmanship in Office of the OSCE, to abide by its international commitments and to uphold the freedom of expression. We urge the government and the opposition to engage in dialogue, furthermore, Our partnership will continue on the basis of the values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law. OSCE — OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović stated on 2 December her concern of the amount of violence used against the media during the demonstrations, council of Europe — CoE Committee on prevention of torture found a deliberate ill-treatment during apprehension of protesters of Euromaidan. Bulgaria – President Rosen Plevneliev advised Ukrainian politicians to listen to the voice of the people and these demonstrators simply want a closer association with the European Union. Freedom of speech and freedom of assembly are fundamental tenets of any democratic country. Canada stands with the people of Ukraine to build a society based on freedom, democracy, human rights, Baird also reaffirmed that the Canadian government would send two dozen election observers to the 15 December repeat elections to the Verkhovna Rada. On 5 December, before leaving Kiev, John Baird visited the Euromaidan protests in Maidan Nezalezhnosti, in the same press statement, Colombia urged the Government of Ukraine to guarantee security, human rights, and the fundamental liberties of its citizens. Germany – Chancellor Angela Merkel commented on 27 November The EU, at the 28–29 November 2013 EU summit Merkel remarked to President Yanukovych We see you here, but we expected more. Foreign minister Guido Westerwelle stated on 2 December the huge rallies showed the heart of Ukrainian people beats in a European way, of course, violent actions of the Ukrainian security forces against peaceful demonstrators were also scandalous. On 4 February 2014 Steinmeier said in an interview with ARD that if the Ukrainian authorities do not find a solution to the crisis I think we must now show sanctions as a threat. Latvia – Foreign Affairs Minister Edgars Rinkevics tweeted, Disturbing news from Ukraine, lithuania – President Dalia Grybauskaitė said that The application of force against peaceful protesters in Kiev is unjustifiable. For the first time the Slavic state defended the right to freedom entirely voluntarily and this is a serious transformation and serious hope that living in the East and in the West will be the same. I strongly believe that Russia, which is a European country, Poland – Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said that President Yanukovych is miscalculating badly as regards the Association Agreement with EU and towards the people of Ukraine. Russia – On 22 November 2013, President Vladimir Putin accused the EU of blackmailing Ukraine to sign the Association Agreement, Putin further blamed outside actors for the protests, which he saw as an attempt to unsettle Ukraines legitimate rulers

18.
1 December 2013 Euromaidan riots
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The day saw the highest numbers of journalists injured by police in a single event since Ukraines independence regain in 1991. Also,1 December became the first instance of a building being occupied by protesters in modern history of the country. Initially,35 people were injured as a result of the raid, including a Reuters cameraman. Most of the protesters were students, at 09,20 Berkut besieged the St. Michaels Golden-Domed Monastery where approximately 50 Euromaidan activists, including the injured, found sanctuary. Minister of Internal Affairs Vitaliy Zakharchenko later apologized and claimed riot police abused their power, via state television he added if there are calls for mass disturbances, then we will react to this harshly. In addition,7 policemen were also injured, ambassadors from some ten countries of the European Union, among which was the Ambassador of the European Union in Ukraine, Jan Tombinski, visited protesters at the meeting. According to Hromadske. TV, by 16,00 the meeting gathered some 5,000 people who were shouting Wont forgive, at St. Michael Square protesters started to form units of self-resistance. Approximately 10,000 protesters remained in the evening of the 30th, with an estimated 10,000 more from Lviv travelling to Kiev on Saturday night, on 30 November opposition parties Batkivshchyna, UDAR and Svoboda set up Headquarters of National Resistance throughout Ukraine. Opposition forces planned the rally on the 1st to take place at St. Michaels Square, during the 1 December rally, protesters followed through and defied the ban and marched form St. Michaels Square to re-take Maidan Nezalezhnosti. People chanted Out with the thugs and sang the Ukrainian anthem, the opposition party Batkivshchyna claimed as much as 500,000 protesters turned out for the rallies, and opposition leader Petro Poroshenko claimed 350,000 were on Maidan Nezalezhnosti. Other news agencies reported over 100,000 in Maidan Nezalezhnosti alone, one poll had 70% of the surge in protesters attributable to the violence of 30 November. At around 14,00, a group of protesters commandeered a bulldozer from Maidan Nezalezhnosti, people threw bricks at Internal Troops guards. At least three people were injured outside of the administration building, receiving head injuries from flying debris. The opposition stated that the confrontations with police forces were organized by provocateurs. They confirmed that the protests of opposition are peaceful, number of activists including Peoples Deputy of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko attempted to stop the tractor. Radio Stolytsia reported that Berkut riot police stopped a motorcade of protesters from heading towards the mansion in Mezhyhirya. The opposition occupied the Kiev City Council and the Trade Unions Building and they still remain under control of the protesters. At the city building, protesters broke windows to get inside the building

19.
Vladimir Lenin monument, Kiev
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The Vladimir Lenin monument in Kiev was a statue dedicated to the founder of the Soviet Union in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It became noticed as being involved in the Euromaidan events when it was violently toppled from its pedestal. Later in its place, a toilet was installed atop the pedestal as a metaphorical symbol of state corruption. Over a hundred other Lenin statues and Soviet icons across Ukraine were destroyed from December 2013 to February 2014, the larger than life-size Lenin monument was built by Soviet sculptor Sergey Merkurov from the same red Karelian stone as Lenins Mausoleum. It was displayed at the 1939 New York Worlds Fair and erected on Kievs main Khreshchatyk Street on 5 December 1946. Nevertheless, due to the resistance of the Communist Party of Ukraine, whose members were elected to Verhovna Rada, since the fall of Soviet rule, the monument survived numerous vandalizing attempts which led to both increased policing of the area and frequent vigilance by Communist activists. On December 1,2013 a group of masked men attempted to topple the statue during the surge of the Euromaidan protests, police immediately reacted by deploying a small Berkut riot police unit which was attacked, overwhelmed and forced to flee. Euromaidan leaders immediately denounced both the monument attempt and the clash with police as an action of unaffiliated provocateurs, subsequently, on December 8,2013, several Ukrainian individuals subsequently claimed to be affiliated with the Svoboda political party toppled the statue, as Kiev police silently looked on. The statue then broke from impact with the ground, after the fall of the Lenin statue the crowd began to sing the national anthem of Ukraine. Later, pieces of the monument were picked up by protesters as souvenirs, the removal or destruction of Lenin monuments and statues gained particular momentum after the destruction of the Kiev Lenin statue. In other cities and towns, monuments were removed by organised heavy equipment and he stated that he would allocate the sum of 100,000 hryvnias for the restoration of the monument. Most residents of Kiev had an attitude to the removal of Lenin’s monument during the mass protest actions, while 13% had a positive attitude. Singer Ruslana was critical of the event, saying, We do not need any barbaric actions, on 15 May 2015, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko signed a bill into law that started a six-month period for the removal of communist monuments

20.
11 December 2013 Euromaidan assault
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Their tactics were the displacement of frontal peaceful protesters from lightly barricaded camps at the Independence Square and part of Khreshchatyk Street which is near Bessarabska Square. The grounds for the assault were the requirements of public enforcement that arrived at the site and it was found later that such a procedure was illegal, as the public enforcement has the right to read out such demands only by 10 pm. In fact, the decision only had to do with the fact that Vitali Klitschko was forbidden to hinder citizens moving along the main streets. Vitali Klitschko himself was informed of that resolution nor given the opportunity to appeal against it. People responsible for the assault against peaceful protesters have not been identified. The Berkut special police began to clear up Euromaidan. Two of them were injured over face and body, andriy Shevchenko informed that Berkut forces were going to break the barricades from the side of Mykhailivska Square. Violent fights occurred in the Square, Berkut were destroying the barricade in Instytutska street, and titushky started plundering the camp. Although the government concentrated a large number of security forces around the square, protesters did not give up, Berkut sprayed gas, the clouds of tear gas were visible over the crowd and messages about arrested and injured people, including MPs, were being reported. Calls for mass mobilization of Kyiv citizens to the Maidan were spread, Berkut suspended the assault and protesters were giving Berkut the shields, obtained from them. Unarmed people had been holding the Euromaidan defense line for three hours against the mass of Berkut from the Instytutska street side of the square. The number of people at Euromaidan grew, but the leaders of Berkut were also trying to regroup forces in order to attack from the other side, several titushky sprang out from the Prorizna street and started to attack people aiming to organize a hash. There were more than 15 thousand people on the Maidan, the Berkut were still trying to break into the trade union building. The number of people on the Maidan was increasing, Berkut came closer to the Maidan and tried to encircle it. As the 4,000 Berkut attacked the square, the bell-ringer of the St. Michaels Golden-Domed Monastery rang the alarm,8 hours after the assault had begun, self-defense units stabilized the Euromaidan perimeter by pushing the Berkut fighters back beyond the barricades. The warning alarm system of the National resistance headquarter enabled a lot of activists to come by cars or passing transport, the illegal court order was not executed. The government didn’t try to execute it any more, the protesters’ tents smashed by security forces were restored after a few hours. Protesters replaced destroyed light barricades were with firm and complicated ones.3 meters, armature, boards, metal fences, the number of barricades around the Euromaidan perimeter was increased in the places where none of them were before

21.
Anti-Maidan
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The Anti-Maidan was a short term gatherings of the pro-government demonstrations driven by the Party of Regions in Ukraine during the course of the Euromaidan movement. These demonstrations supported the Second Azarov Government, President Victor Yanukovych, a pro-government counter protest reportedly gathered 10,000 people on 25 November. According to the Kyiv Post, demonstrators held anti-EU and homophobic banners, on 29 November a 2-hour 3,000 people strong pro-government rally took place on European Square. Party of Regions member of parliament Vladyslav Lukianov told the crowd, let the land shatter from our steps. The Kyiv Post again reported incentives were given to attend and described attendants in appearance to be homeless, the crowd consists mostly of men. Euronews spoke of many being bused in from the east of the country where pro-Russian sentiment is strong and they, too, carried national flags as well as those of the ruling Party of Regions. Many in the crowd refused to talk to Euronews, on 30 November, several thousand protesters had been brought into Kharkiv on buses to stage a rally to support the government on Freedom Square. Some 170 buses were reported on the scene, and the number of attendees was according to organisers allegedly over 70,000, the event lasted only 1 hour. Reports indicated attendees were paid UAH₴50 to attend, and reports indicated that many were public sector workers who did not attend on their own accord, the rally was both pro-administration and pro-European Integration. On 3 December,1,000 attended a rally in Kiev put on by the Party of Regions to support the president. The same day, it was reported by journalists of Espreso. tv that a Party of Regions organised rally in Kiev was paying UAH₴200 to participants via online job postings. On 4 December,15,000 rallied in Donetsk in support of the president, the Party of Regions denied any allegations of forcing anyone to attend. A rally and tent camp action in support of President Viktor Yanukovych, the Party of Regionss press service reported on Sunday 6 December that over 15,000 people were taking part in a pro-government rally there. According to city police, there were some 3,000 people in the park the day before, and the press estimated them at 2,000. Police heavily guarded this event from not only anti-government protesters, but also from any journalists, according to Segodnya, people attending the pro-government Marinsky Park event were hired or obliged to attend, and forced to stay for a pre-determined time. In one incident on 8 December, protesters were held at the rally against their will by armed security. Speaking on condition of anonymity to the Kyiv Post, one said that participants of the rally are paid UAH₴300 or more in order to earn money without going to work. She also recalled cases when they were not let outside the rally for the day, while inside the camp there was a build up of garbage

22.
Vasylkiv terrorists case
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The Vasylkiv terrorists case is an alleged terror plot of three far-right activists trying to blow up a statue of Lenin in the Ukrainian city Boryspil in August 2011. The statue was removed in June 2011, the three suspects were arrested on 22 August 2011. Following the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, on February 24 they were released, allegedly Volodymyr Shpara, Ihor Mosiychuk and Serhiy Bevza had plotted to blow up statue of Lenin in Boryspil on Independence Day of Ukraine on 24 August 2011. Shpara, Mosiychuk and Bevza denied the accusations and accused law enforcers of planting the bomb, according to SBU spokeswoman Maryna Ostapenko In addition to the explosive device, SBU officers also found a huge number of leaflets calling for extremist actions. Initially the SBU suspected a plot to detonate a bomb during the celebration of Ukraines Independence Day in Kiev, before the alleged plot was discovered the Boryspil City Council had voted to remove the Lenin statue. The statue of Lenin in Boryspil was removed in June 2011 by the citys authorities, Shpara, Mosiychuk and Bevza became known as the Vasylkiv terrorists. On 10 January 2014 the three defendants were jailed for six years beyond the two years they have spent in pre-trial detention. Their defenders had stated that the crime never took place, that the statue had already been removed, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine someone had thrown an unidentified substance in the judges face during the pronouncement of the sentence. The clash between police and protesters lasted overnight until 2 a. m. on 11 January 2014, the protesters had denounced the prosecution of the three men as politically motivated and a show trial. After the verdict they blocked the exit in an attempt to prevent police from taking the three convicts to prison. After police had broken through the crowd protesters along the route then blocked the vehicles that attempted to transport the convicts by surrounding them with private cars, more police buses with at least 400 riot police then arrived. The following clashes between police and protesters left dozens of injured, including former Minister of Internal Affairs Yuriy Lutsenko. According to Lutsenkos wife Iryna her husband had been attacked by police as he tried to break up the violence, Lutsenko was hospitalised in an intensive care ward. According to MP from Svoboda Yuriy Syrotiuk over ten activists, several journalists, according to Syrotiuk the Berkut riot police had violated official instructions and had hit peoples heads. 20 Berkut were injured, one with a broken leg, the event took place amid ongoing Euromaidan anti-government rallies. Just before the event took place, the Automaidan movement had blockaded buses carrying policemen, European Union and US officials condemned the violence against demonstrators. US Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey R. Pyatt stated “Yuriy Lutsenko will be remembered as hero of EuroMaidan, at the same time, the results of a medical examination of those who suffered in clashes with the police reveal some facts of them being in a state of alcoholic intoxication. This also concerns one prominent opposition politician, Ukraines ruling Party of Regions condemned the assault on the court and accused Svoboda of provocation

23.
Anti-protest laws in Ukraine
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The Ukrainian anti-protest laws are a group of ten laws restricting freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. The laws are known as the dictatorship laws by Euromaidan activists, non-governmental organizations, scholars. Western nations have criticised the laws for their nature and their ability to significantly curb the rights to protest, free speech. They have been described in the media and by experts as draconian, the laws were widely denounced internationally, with US Secretary of State John Kerry describing them as anti-democratic. They were adopted with a number of procedural violations, in accordance with enforcing the new laws, Interior Minister Vitaliy Zakharchenko pledged that each offence will be met by our side harshly. Nine anti-protest laws were cancelled by the Parliament on 28 January 2014, when adopting the laws the Parliament violated a number of its own procedural rules. The laws were voted mostly by showing of hands and this is allowed by the Rules of Procedureuk but only when there is no technical possibility to vote through the electronic system. Moreover, hands were counted within a few seconds, based on the number of MPs included in the parliamentary groups, diplomas observing the votes counted only some 100 to 140 raised hands, while the laws would have needed to be adopted by a majority of 226 votes. Most of the laws were adopted without prior consideration in the committees as required. Simplifying the process of removal of parliamentary immunity during criminal proceedings to a majority vote in the Parliament, on January 28, the Parliament voted to repeal nine of the laws, with 361 of the 450 MPs in favor. In this election 64 MPs who had supported the Dictatorship laws were re-elected, on 11 December 2014 these 64 MPs were banned from senior parliamentary committee posts. On 15 February 2015 Oleksandr Yefremov was arrested for forgery of documents during the adoption of the anti-protest laws, at the time of the adoption of the anti-protest laws he was Party of Regions faction leader in the Ukrainian parliament. The Ukrainian opposition warned the new measures would further inflame the protest movement, January 16 was dubbed Black Thursday. Lviv mayor Andriy Sadovy declared the laws unconstitutional and that they would not be enforced in the city, European Union – In a tweet on Thursday following the events in parliament, European Union Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fuele said he was profoundly concerned by new legislation limiting freedoms. United States – Secretary of State John Kerry said the legislation that was rammed through the Rada without transparency and accountability violates all the norms of the OSCE and he further described the laws as anti-democratic. Wikipedia – Announced a daily shutdown of the Ukrainian language version of the encyclopedia from January 21 onward, the site announced the shutdown in a declaration titled Against Censorship

24.
2014 Hrushevskoho Street riots
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During a Euromaidan rally which gathered up to 200,000 protesters, participants marched on the Verkhovna Rada and were met by police cordons. Following a tense stand-off, violence started as police confronted protesters, protesters erected blockades to prevent the movement of government forces. Four protesters were confirmed as having died in clashes with police, on 28 January 2014,9 of the 12 anti-protest laws were repealed and Prime Minister Mykola Azarov tendered his resignation and a bill offering amnesty to arrested and charged protesters was issued. On 14 February 2014, groups responsible for organizing the standoff agreed to partially unblock the street to restore traffic, following the amnesty of protesters on 16 February 2014, police and protesters mutually receded while allowing a corridor for traffic. This lasted until 18 February 2014, when thousands marched on parliament once again, reestablishing Hrushevskoho Street, by 19 February 2014, all barricades had been cleared from the streets and protesters pushed back. On 19 January, a Sunday mass protest, the ninth in a row, took place gathering up to 200,000 in central Kiev to protest the new anti-protest laws, dubbed the Dictatorship laws. The rally was attended by leaders, but was also the first public appearance of Tetiana Chornovol since her alleged attack by the authorities. Many protesters ignored the face concealment ban by wearing party masks, while others wore hard hats, autoMaidan leader Dmytro Bulatov demanded a single oppositional candidate be named, and the crowd also chanted against leaders to comply with this action. Batkivshchyna leaders Arseniy Yatsenyuk and Oleksandr Turchynov declared that a new, tomorrow the regime will enslave you too. Therefore we are calling on you to fulfil your military oath of loyalty to the Ukrainian people and not to the authorities who have gone off the rails, he was quoted as saying. Clashes began as thousands descended upon parliament via Hrushevskoho Street, and were met by police cordons, police warned over loudspeaker, stating, Dear citizens, your actions are illegal and are against the state. They also warned that advancing within three meters of police would be considered a threat to police officers rights and will prompt a response, tensions eventually developed, and the sides exchanged projectiles as protesters attacked the police barricade armed with sticks, pipes, helmets, and gas masks. They were met with stun and smoke grenades, opposition leader Vitali Klitschko was sprayed with a fire extinguisher by a protester from the crowd, and shouted down as a traitor. Following this, live TV pictures showed protesters attempting to overturn a bus used by police, at least three buses were overtaken by rioters. Water cannons used to douse the flames were directed at protesters. Later, rubber bullets were used against protesters as more vehicles were set ablaze. Up to 10,000 rioters remained near the Valeriy Lobanovskyi Dynamo Stadium by 10 p. m. as rioting and clashes continued with smoke filling the air from the burning vehicles. The entire line of buses used in the blockade was set on fire

25.
2014 Ukrainian revolution
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After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Ukraine endured years of corruption, mismanagement, lack of economic growth, currency devaluation, and problems to secure funding from public markets. Successive Ukrainian governments in the 2000s sought a relationship with the European Union. One of the measures meant to achieve this was an agreement with the European Union. President Yanukovych announced his intention to sign the agreement, but ultimately refused to do so at the last minute and this sparked a wave of protests called the Euromaidan movement. During these protests Yanukovych signed a treaty and multibillion-dollar loan with Russia, the Ukrainian security forces cracked down on the protesters, further inflaming the situation and resulting in a series of violent clashes in the streets of Kiev. As tensions rose, Yanukovych fled to Russia and did not return, Russia refused to recognize the new interim government, calling the revolution a coup détat, and began a military intervention in Ukraine. The International Monetary Fund pledged more than $18 billion in loans contingent on Ukraines adopting those reforms, a period of relative calm in the anti-government demonstrations in Kiev ended abruptly on 18 February 2014, when protesters and police clashed. At least 82 people were killed over the few days, including 13 policemen. The confrontation turned violent, the BBC, citing correspondents, reported that each side blamed the other, the police fired guns with both rubber bullets and, later, live ammunition, while also using tear gas and flash grenades in an attempt to repel thousands of demonstrators. The protesters fought with weapons, firearms, and improvised explosives. Police officers stormed the main protest camp on Maidan Nezalezhnosti and overran parts of the square, the Trade Unions Building, which served as the Euromaidan headquarters, was burned down. Political commentators suggested that Ukraine was on the brink of a civil war, some areas, including Lviv Oblast, declared themselves politically independent of the central government. On 19 February, the authorities instituted police checkpoints, restrictions on public transportation, and school closures in Kiev, on 20 February, Internal Affairs Minister Vitaliy Zakharchenko announced that he had signed a decree authorising the use of live ammunition against protesters. Central Kiev saw the worst violence yet, and the toll in 48 hours of clashes rose to at least 77. Parliament also suspended Zakharchenko from his duties, on 21 February, President Yanukovych signed a compromise deal with opposition leaders. It promised constitutional changes to certain powers to Parliament and called for early elections to be held by December. On 21 February, an impeachment bill was introduced in Parliament, on the same day, Yanukovych left for Kharkiv to attend a summit of southeastern regions, according to media reports. On 22 February, the protesters were reported to be in control of Kiev, the parliament, or Verkhovna Rada, voted 328–0 in favour of impeaching Yanukovych and scheduled new presidential elections for 25 May

26.
2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine
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During the first stage of the unrest, Crimea was invaded and annexed by the Russian Federation after a Russian military intervention, and an internationally criticized Crimean referendum. Protests in Donetsk and Luhansk regions escalated into an armed pro-Russian separatist insurgency, from late 2014, cities outside of the Donbass combat zone, such as Kharkiv, Odessa, Kiev and Mariupol, were struck by bombings that targeted pro-Ukrainian unity organizations. Ukraine became gripped by unrest when President Viktor Yanukovych refused to sign an agreement with the European Union on 21 November 2013. An organized political movement known as Euromaidan demanded closer ties with the European Union, and this movement was ultimately successful, culminating in the February 2014 revolution, which removed Yanukovych and his government. Various demonstrations were held in Crimea in favour of leaving Ukraine and accession to the Russian Federation, on 1 March, regional state administration buildings in various eastern Ukrainian oblasts were briefly occupied by pro-Russian activists. By 11 March, all occupations had ended, after units of the local police, in Donetsk, protests escalated into violence on multiple occasions, including on 13 March, when a pro-Ukrainian protester was stabbed to death. In Kharkiv, Patriots of Ukraine militants killed a protester and a passer-by on the night of 15 March. The attendees of the protests included Russian citizens from across the border who came to support the efforts of activists in Ukraine. Donetsk oblast governor Serhiy Taruta said that rallies in Donetsk contained ex-convicts, Ukraines police and border guards had denied more than 8,200 Russians entry into Ukraine between 4 and 25 March. On 27 March, National Security and Defence Council Secretary Andriy Parubiy said that between 500 and 700 Russians were being denied entry daily, a poll conducted by Kyiv International Institute of Sociology from 8–18 February 2014 assessed support for union with Russia throughout Ukraine. It found that, overall, 12% of those polled favoured union with Russia,68. 0% of those from the four regions surveyed agreed that Ukraine should remain independent, with friendly relations maintained between Russia and Ukraine. Only 5% of respondents in eastern Ukraine felt that Russian-speakers were definitely under pressure or threat, 43% of ethnic Russians supported the decision of the Russian Federation to send its military to protect Russian-speaking citizens of Ukraine. 59% of those polled in eastern Ukraine would like to join the Russian-led customs union, among all the Ukrainians polled overall, 34% favour joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, while 44% are against joining it. In eastern Ukraine and southern Ukraine, only 14% and 11% of the respondents respectively favour joining NATO, while 67% in eastern Ukraine, 72% of people polled in eastern Ukraine thought that the country was going in the wrong direction, compared with only 36% in the western Ukraine. A poll conducted by the Institute of Social Research and Policy Analysis analysed the identities of Donetsk inhabitants, while support for separatism was low, just over a third of polled Donetsk inhabitants identified themselves as citizens of Ukraine. More preferred Russian-speaking residents of Ukraine or residents of Donbass, the same poll determined that 66% of Donetsk residents that were polled supported remaining in a unified Ukraine, while 18. 2% supported joining Russia, and 4. 7% supported independence. A second poll conducted from 26–29 March showed that 77% of residents condemned the takeover of administrative buildings, furthermore,40. 8% of Donetsk citizens supported rallies for Ukraines unity, while 26. 5% supported pro-Russian rallies. In another research poll conducted 8–16 April by KIIS, a vast majority disapproved of the seizure of buildings by protesters

27.
Timeline of the 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine
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This is a timeline of the 2014 pro-Russian unrest that has erupted in Ukraine, in the aftermath of the Ukrainian revolution and the Euromaidan movement. They threatened the Ukrainian central authorities that it reserved the right to ask for help from the people of the Russian Federation. Pro-Russian citizens held a rally of up to 5,000 against the new government, there were reports of busloads of Russian citizens crossing the border into Ukraine to support pro-Russian demonstrators. At an administrative building in Kharkiv, a Russian from Moscow replaced the Ukrainian flag with a Russian one, the flag was restored and 200 policemen guarded the building. Protesters in Donetsk reportedly raised the Russian tricolor over the Donetsk Oblast Regional Administration building, demonstrators in Mariupol also protested in front of regional offices, waving Russian flags. According to Interfax, between 5,000 and 20,000 participated in a demonstration in Odessa. Russian flags were raised in Melitopol and Yevpatoria. The city council of Donetsk voted on 1 March to have a referendum on the status of the region, in Zaporizhia 1, 000–5,000 estimated protesters gathered to save the Lenin monument. There, they protested against the Kiev government and in support of Berkut troops. Various Russian news media outlets started to use the term Russian Spring to describe the protests, in Zaporizhia, over 5,000 protested against Russian intervention and pro-Russian demonstrations, and unity in Ukraine. They also protested against people seizing state buildings and raising Russian flags over them, similar rallies were held in Dnipropetrovsk, Odessa, Mykolaiv and Kharkiv. Over 2,000 protesters gathered over Donetsk Oblast administrative building, broke through police barricades, the pro-Russian group is led by Pavel Gubarev, a former member of the neo-Nazi Russian National Unity party, who is claiming to be the peoples governor of the region. 200–500 demonstrators with Russian flags, opponents of the new authorities in Kiev and they demanded that a referendum on the establishment of an Odessa Autonomous Republic be held. Protesters shouted traitor. and Judas. at him, meanwhile, Reuters reports that anti-Kiev protesters have broken into the first floor of the Donetsk RSA building. Pro-Russian separatists consolidated their control of the local Regional Administration in Donetsk, Pavel Gubarev was elected governor, and told reporters that work on the structure of the new administration is being done. We dont want to give our money any more to Kiev and we want more freedom for our city in a new federation or confederation that allows us to embrace the friendly ties and positive feelings towards us of the people of Russia, Gubarev said. Hundreds later protested peacefully against the pro-Russian RSA occupiers and in support of a united Ukraine, on the evening of 4 March, a large peaceful rally of over 2,000 supporting peace and a united Ukraine was held in central Donetsk. After the bomb-scare and subsequent evacuation, the Ukrainian flag was raised over the building for the first time since 1 March, however, later in the evening, hundreds of pro-Russian protesters retook the building, and once again raised the Russian flag

28.
Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation
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The Ukrainian territory of Crimea was annexed by the Russian Federation on 18 March 2014. On 23 February 2014, pro-Russian demonstrations were held in the Crimean city of Sevastopol and it led to the other members of the then G8 suspending Russia from the group, then introducing the first round of sanctions against the country. The resolution calls upon all States and international organizations not to recognize or to imply the recognition of Russias annexation, the Russian Federation opposes the annexation label, with Putin defending the referendum as complying with the principle of self-determination of peoples. In July 2015, Russian prime minister Dmitry Medvedev said that Crimea had been integrated into Russia. Crimea became part of the Russian Empire in 1783, when the Crimean Khanate was annexed, initially it was incorporated into the Empire as Taurida Oblast but in 1795 it was merged into Novorossiysk Governorate and then, in 1802, transferred to the Taurida Governorate. A series of short-lived governments were established during first stages of the Russian Civil War, in October 1921, the Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic of the Russian SFSR was instituted. In 1954, the Crimean Oblast was transferred from the Russian SFSR to the Ukrainian SSR by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. In 1989, under perestroika, the Supreme Soviet declared that the deportation of the Crimean Tatars under Stalin had been illegal, in 1990, the Soviet of the Crimean Oblast proposed the restoration of the Crimean ASSR. The oblast conducted a referendum in 1991, which asked whether Crimea should be elevated into a signatory of the New Union Treaty, by that time, though, the dissolution of the Soviet Union was well underway. The Crimean ASSR was restored for less than a year as part of Soviet Ukraine before Ukrainian independence, newly independent Ukraine maintained Crimeas autonomous status, while the Supreme Council of Crimea affirmed the peninsulas sovereignty as a part of Ukraine. The autonomous status of Crimea was limited by Ukrainian authorities in 1995, on 24 August 2009, anti-Ukrainian demonstrations were held in Crimea by ethnic Russian residents. Sergei Tsekov said then that he hoped that Russia would treat Crimea the same way as it had treated South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Yanukovych won the 2010 presidential election with strong support from voters in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and southern and eastern Ukraine. The Crimean autonomous government strongly supported Yanukovych and condemned the protests, on 4 February 2014, the Presidium of the Supreme Council considered holding a referendum on the peninsulas status, and asked the Russian government to guarantee the vote. The Security Service of Ukraine responded by opening a case to investigate the possible subversion of Ukraines territorial integrity. The Euromaidan protests came to a head in late February 2014, arseniy Yatsenyuk was appointed by the Rada to serve as the head of a caretaker government until new presidential and parliament elections could be held. This new government was recognised internationally, though the Russian government said that these events had been a coup détat, in January 2014 the Sevastopol city council had already called for formation of peoples militia units to ensure firm defence of the city from extremism. Crimean parliament members called for a meeting on 21 February. Crimean Tatar Mejlis chairman Mustafa Dzhemilev said that he suspected that the meeting was arranged to call for Russian military intervention in Crimea

29.
War in Donbass
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The War in Donbass is an armed conflict in the Donbass region of Ukraine. Prior to a change of the top leadership in August 2014, during the middle of 2014, Russian paramilitaries were reported to make up between 15% and 80% of the combatants. Crossings occurred both in areas under the control of forces and areas that were not under their control, such as the south-eastern part of Donetsk Oblast. These events followed the reported shelling of Ukrainian positions from the Russian side of the border over the course of the preceding month, head of the Security Service of Ukraine, Valentyn Nalyvaichenko said that the events of 22 August were a direct invasion by Russia of Ukraine. Western and Ukrainian officials described these events as an invasion of Ukraine by Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin justified the incursion as defending the Russian-speaking population in the Donbass, as a result of this, DPR and LPR insurgents regained much of the territory they had lost during the preceding government military offensive. A deal to establish a ceasefire, called the Minsk Protocol, was signed on 5 September 2014, violations of the ceasefire on both sides were common. The ceasefire completely collapsed in January 2015, with renewed heavy fighting across the zone, including at Donetsk International Airport. A new ceasefire, called Minsk II, was agreed to on 12 February 2015, immediately following the signing of the agreement, separatist forces launched an offensive on Debaltseve and forced Ukrainian forces to withdraw from it. In the months after the fall of Debaltseve, minor skirmishes continued along the line of contact, but no territorial changes occurred. This state of stalemate led the war to be labelled by some a frozen conflict, despite this, the area stayed a war zone, with dozens of soldiers and civilians killed each month. Since the start of the conflict there have been eleven ceasefires, each intended to be indefinite, with the latest having started on 20 February 2017, pro-Russian protesters occupied the Donetsk RSA from 1–6 March, before being removed by the Security Service of Ukraine. On 6 April,1, 000–2,000 people gathered at a rally in Donetsk to demand a status similar to the one held in Crimea in March. The demonstrators stormed the RSA building, and took control of its first two floors, as these demands were not met, the activists held a meeting in the RSA building, and voted in favour of independence from Ukraine. They proclaimed the Donetsk Peoples Republic, concurrent to the events in Donetsk, armed forces led by Russian operative Igor Girkin stormed and occupied government buildings in other regional centers beginning on 12 April. Protesters barricaded the building, and demanded that all arrested separatist leaders be released, at this assembly, they elected Valery Bolotov to the position of Peoples Governor. The Luhansk Peoples Republic was declared on 27 April, representatives of the Republic demanded that Ukrainian government provide amnesty for all protesters, enshrine Russian as an official language, and hold a referendum on the status of the region. They issued an ultimatum that stated that if Kiev did not meet their demands by 14,00 on 29 April, in response to the widening unrest, the acting Ukrainian President, Oleksandr Turchynov, vowed to launch a major anti-terror operation against separatist movements in Donetsk Oblast

30.
First Yatsenyuk government
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The first government headed by Arseniy Yatsenyuk was created in Ukraine on 27 February 2014 in the aftermath of the Ukrainian revolution. The cabinet was formed as a coalition of the parties Batkivschyna, UDAR and Svoboda, on 24 July 2014, UDAR and Svoboda and 19 independent MPs had exited from the coalition to pave the way for the early parliamentary elections of late October 2014. Prime Minister Yatsenyuk announced his resignation the day, but the Verkhovna Rada declined his resignation on 31 July 2014. After the 26 October 2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election the Second Yatsenyuk Government was created, the government was first presented at Kievs main Euromaidan protest camp at Maidan Nezalezhnosti on 26 February 2014. The government was voted on by Verkhovna Rada on 27 February 2014, there were no government posts for the UDAR party led by one of the Euromaidan leaders, Vitali Klitschko. UDAR declined offers to participate in the new government, on its first day 250 MPs signed up to join the coalition, including the Batkivshchyna, UDAR, Svoboda factions, the Economic Development and Sovereign European Ukraine groups and other MPs. For the candidacy of the Prime Minister of Ukraine,371 members of parliament voted for Arseniy Yatsenyuk, on March 1,2014 Ministry of Revenues and Duties was liquidated. Its agencies were transferred to the Ministry of Finance, on March 23,2014 the Ministry of Industrial Policy was merged with the Ministry of Economy and Trade. On 19 June 2014 First Vice Prime Minister Vitaly Yarema was appointed General Prosecutor of Ukraine, the same day Pavlo Klimkin was appointed as Ukrainian foreign minister, replacing Andrii Deshchytsia. On 2 September 2014 the 21 August 2014 resignation of Pavlo Sheremeta as minister of economical development, UDAR faction leader Vitaliy Kovalchuk stated his party had done this Since we see that the Verkhovna Rada is not set for constructive work in accordance with the will of the Ukrainian people. 15 independent deputies and 8 Batkivschyna deputies also quit the coalition, soon followed by 4 more independent deputies. Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk announced his resignation late afternoon on 24 July 2014, in the evening of 25 July the press service of parliament stated that parliament had received the statement of the Prime Minister of Ukraine of his resignation. But his resignation was to be accepted by parliament. And the Verkhovna Rada declined his resignation on 31 July 2014 when only 16 MPs voted for his resignation, early August 2014 the Yatsenyuk government introduced a draft tax reform which would reduce the number of taxes and fees from 22 to 9. The Yatsenyuk government has stated it does not have the intention of making Ukraine a member of NATO, the recognition would extend further with U. S. Vice President Joe Biden telling that same day to Yatsenyuk that his government had the full support of the United States. This disagreement is one of the factors contributed to the Crimean crisis that took place in the Crimean peninsula in the southeastern region of Ukraine which is predominantly pro-Russian. Russia – The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the new government of Ukraine the government of victors which contains representatives of national-extremists, governmental Portal of Ukraine – official site of the Cabinet of Ministers

31.
Lustration in Ukraine
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They may be excluded for five to ten years. The complete process of checking all civil servants is to be completed in December 2016, elected offices like the President of Ukraine and Peoples Deputies of Ukraine will not be subject to lustration checks. Current judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine and the Supreme Court of Ukraine will not be subject to lustration either, Lustration was one of the demands of the Euromaidan-protestors. The Euromaidan-protests started in November 2013 and ended with the 22 February 2014 removal of office of President Viktor Yanukovych, on 26 February 2014, Ehor Sobolev was nominated to lead the Committee on Lustration in the new Yatsenyuk Government. The bill was passed with the support of 252 out of 450 MPs, on 16 September 2014 the Ukrainian parliament at the third reading adopted the law on lustration and thus finally passed the bill that took effect on 16 October 2014. The head of the group which finalized the bill on lustration, Yuriy Derevianko. The first lustration wave, in October 2014, resulted in the removal of 39 high-ranking officials, by mid-September 2015700 officials were lustrated/fired. Volodymyr Yavorsky of the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group described the 14 August 2014 lustration bill as unreasonable

32.
Ukrainian presidential election, 2014
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Presidential elections were held in Ukraine on 25 May 2014, resulting in Petro Poroshenko being elected President of Ukraine. Originally scheduled to take place on 29 March 2015, the date was changed following the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, Poroshenko won the elections with 54. 7% of the votes. His closest competitor was Yulia Tymoshenko, who emerged with 12. 81% of the votes, the Central Election Commission reported voter turnout at over 60% excluding those regions not under government control. Since Poroshenko obtained a majority in the first round, a run-off second ballot was unnecessary. The elections were not held throughout Ukraine, during the 2014 Crimean crisis, Ukraine lost control over Crimea, which was unilaterally annexed by Russia in March 2014. As a result, elections were not held in Crimea, in the Donbass region of Ukraine only 20% of the ballot stations were open due to threats and violence by pro-Russia separatists. Of the 2,430 planned ballot stations only 426 remained open for polling, the self-proclaimed Donetsk Peoples Republic and Luhansk Peoples Republic, controlling large parts of the Donbass, had vowed to do everything possible to disrupt the elections. Poroshenko will serve a term in office. Initially the elections were scheduled for 29 March 2015, on 7 December 2012, Fatherland nominated Yulia Tymoshenko as its presidential candidate. On 14 June 2013, the congress of her party approved the decision to nominate her as its candidate for the presidential election. On 11 October 2011, a Ukrainian court found Tymoshenko guilty of abuse of power, sentenced her to seven years in jail, because Tymoshenko was in prison during the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election, Arseniy Yatsenyuk headed the election list of Fatherland. Tymoshenko remained in prison until 22 February 2014, after parliament voted for her release and removal of her criminal record, if the election format were to change to a single round, the three parties vowed to agree on a single candidate. On 24 October 2013, the leader of UDAR, Vitali Klitschko, experts and lawyers argued that it is unclear if Klitschko could take part. Under Ukrainian law a candidate must have had his residence in Ukraine for the past ten years prior to election day. Klitschko has lived for years in both Ukraine and Germany, where, according to media reports, he has a residence permit. Klitschko confirmed on 28 February 2014 that he take part in the 2014 Ukrainian presidential election. However, on 29 March, he withdrew from the race for the presidency, former President Viktor Yanukovych, prior to his dismissal and subsequent flight from the country, was considered likely to run for his second and final term. But, as of 19 December 2013, he had no final decision on this

33.
Ukrainian local elections, 2014
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The 2014 Ukrainian local elections took place on May 25,2014, four years after the conclusion of the last local elections, which took place in October 2010. The elections occurred during the crisis in the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution. No Ukrainian mayoral or council elections took place in the Crimea, however, as, in June 2014, the Verkhovna Rada scheduled early mayoral elections for ten additional cities to be held on October 26,2014. On April 8,2014, the Ukrainian parliament passed a new law regarding the elections in the country. The new law allows local elections to be conducted concurrently with presidential elections and it also formalized the status of election observers, officially making them a part of the electoral process, and expanding their rights and authority. The Verkhovna Rada, the parliament of the Ukraine, scheduled the elections for Kievs mayor and city council for 25 May 2014, in Odessa Gennadiy Trukhanov defeated Eduard Gurwits with 43. 39% against 32, 02% in the mayoral election. In Mykolaiv Acting Mayor Yuriy Hranaturov kept this post with 28, Hranaturov was an independent candidate, but former Party of Regions member until a few months for the election. In Kherson Acting Mayor and Batkivshchyna member Volodymyr Mykolayenko won the elections in with 35. 93%. In Sumy Acting Mayor and Batkivshchyna member Oleksandr Lysenko won the elections in with 41. The Central Election Commission of Ukraine ordered a re-count in Cherkasy by a new local Election Commission on 4 June 2014 because of systematic, communist Party of Ukraine candidate Valentin Demyanchuk won the mayoral election in Piatykhatky, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast with 27% of the vote

34.
Kiev local election, 2014
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Local elections in Kiev for the post of Mayor and members of Kiev City Council took place on 25 May 2014 as part of the 2014 Ukrainian local elections. Vitali Klitschko won the election with almost 57% of the votes. The next Kiev local elections were held in October 2015, secretary of the Kiev City Council Halyna Hereha has been acting mayor since Leonid Chernovetsky resigned as the Mayor of Kiev on 1 June 2012. Hereha asked the Verkhovna Rada to issue an instruction on holding an early election on 19 July 2012. The Constitutional Court started considering this case on 11 April 2013, on 29 May 2013 the Constitutional Court set the date of the election as 25 October 2015. As of 7 March 2013 possible candidates for the post of the Mayor of Kiev were Vitali Klitschko, Andriy Illyenko, Petro Poroshenko, oleksandr Popov of Party of Regions and former Head of Kiev City Administration stated in February 2013 that he was a candidate. On 14 December 2013 President Viktor Yanukovych suspended him as Head of the Kiev City State Administration, the same day the General Prosecutor of Ukraines Office handed a notification on suspicion of abuse of power when ordering the Euromaidan police actions of 30 November 2013 to Popov. On 25 April 2014 the Party of Regions announced that they would not put forward a candidate for the elections, the Verkhovna Rada set a date for the elections on 25 February 2014, just after the 2014 Ukrainian revolution. However, it was decided that date should be 25 May 2014. 35 parties took part in these elections and those seats were won in 60 majority constituencies and another 60 on party lists. Several parties, among them Party of Regions, disappeared from the local parliament, mayoral candidates were able to nominate themselves from 23 April 2014 until 30 April 2014. 19 candidates competed for the post, also potential candidates were Yuriy Levchenko, Ihor Lutsenko, and Volodymyr Makeyenko. Lesya Orobets and Ivan Saliy were withdrawn from the race on 13 May, but later they were restored as candidates on 16 May. 3% for Popov, and 7% for Poroshenko. This poll also showed that if Klitschko and Popov would proceeded to a second round 60. 4% would cast their ballots for Klitschko and 26. 5% for Popov. A June 2013 poll by GfK Ukraine gave Klitschko 32. 7%, Popov 15. 9%, legal status and local government of Kiev

35.
Crimean status referendum, 2014
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The referendum asked local population whether they wanted to join Russia as a federal subject, or if they wanted to restore the 1992 Crimean constitution and Crimeas status as a part of Ukraine. The March 16 referendums available choices did not include keeping the status quo of Crimea, the final date and ballot choices were set only ten days before the plebiscite was held. Thirteen members of the United Nations Security Council voted in favor of a resolution declaring the referendum invalid, the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People called for a boycott of the referendum. Russia officially recognized the results of the Crimean referendum and states that unilateral Kosovo declaration of independence has set a precedent, such parallels, however, are disputed by legal scholars. The official result from the Autonomous Republic of Crimea was a 96.77 percent vote for integration of the region into the Russian Federation with an 83.1 percent voter turnout. The Mejlis Deputy Chairman Akhtem Chiygoz felt that the actual turnout could not have exceeded 30–40 percent, following the referendum, The Supreme Council of Crimea and Sevastopol City Council declared the independence of the Republic of Crimea from Ukraine and requested to join the Russian Federation. On the same day, Russia recognized the Republic of Crimea as a sovereign state. According to the 2014 Ukrainian population census,65. 3% of the population of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea are ethnic Russians,15. 7% are ethnic Ukrainians and 12. 2% are Crimean Tatars. In Sevastopol,71. 6% are ethnic Russians and 22. 4% are ethnic Ukrainians, 77% of Crimeas and 94% of Sevastopols population are native speakers of Russian. Crimea and Sevastopol are neighboring subdivisions of Ukraine located in the Crimean peninsula, following the Tatar deportation, large numbers of ethnic Russians and ethnic Ukrainians settled in the region. During the period of the Soviet Union, the Crimean Oblast was a subdivision of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic until the 1954 transfer of Crimea into the Ukrainian SSR. Crimea became part of independent Ukraine after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Ukrainian parliament abolished the 1992 Crimean Constitution and the office of President of Crimea in 1995. In 1998, Crimea gained a new constitution, which granted it autonomy, notably. Razumkov characterized Crimeans views as controversial and unsteady, and therefore vulnerable to internal and external influences, the survey showed widespread support for Crimea’s decision to secede from Ukraine and join the Russian Federation one year ago. Overall, the found that 84% of Crimeans felt that the choice to secede fro Ukraine. Russian president Vladimir Putin has an experience with similar referendums, the Narva referendum was not backed by Moscow. Cossacks were amassed on the side of the Narva River before the referendum. Putin and St. Petersburg mayor Anatoly Sobchak managed to prevent Cossacks from crossing the border, the interim government in Kiev and the pro-Russian Crimean faction do not recognize each other as legitimate

36.
Donbass status referendums, 2014
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These referendums sought to legitimise the establishment of the republics, in the context of the rising pro-Russian unrest in the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution. In addition, a counter-referendum on accession to Dnipropetrovsk Oblast was held in some Ukrainian-controlled parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. The results of the separatist referendums were not officially recognised by any government, including those of Ukraine, the United States, the countries of the European Union, the Russian government expressed respect for the results and urged a civilised implementation. The referendums were modelled on a disputed referendum held in Crimea during the Crimean crisis. That vote ultimately resulted in the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, many government buildings in towns and cities across Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts became occupied by separatist insurgents as the Republic expanded its territorial control. As a result, the Ukrainian government launched a counter-offensive against insurgents in some parts of Donetsk Oblast. An agreement made in Geneva between the United States, European Union, Russia, and Ukraine was intended to demilitarise and de-escalate the conflict, but the leaders of the republics rejected it. They stated that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov did not represent them, instead, they said that they would only end their occupation of government buildings after the referendums. The referendums took place as mounting anger rose against the so-called anti-terrorist operations by Ukrainian forces against separatists, Russian president Vladimir Putin publicly asked pro-Russian separatists to postpone the proposed referendums to create the necessary conditions for dialogue on 7 May. Despite Putins comments, the authorities of Donetsk Peoples Republic. That day a principal of a school in Luhansk was kidnapped by four masked gunmen. Another poll, taken by the Donetsk Institute for Social Research and Political Analysis, even with those who said they would not vote counted in, a 65. 6% majority supported separation from Ukraine. In the recording, the separatist said he wanted to postpone the referendum, Barkashov said that he had communicated with Putin, and insisted on holding the referendum regardless of the separatist leaders concerns. He instructed the separatists to tabulate the results as 89% in favour of autonomy, separatists stated that the recording was fake. Swiss left-wing newspaper Tages-Anzeiger reported that voters were able to vote as many times as they wanted, internal Affairs ministry officials branded the vote a farce, and said that just over 32 percent of registered voters in Donetsk Oblast participated in the vote. According to Andrei Buzin, co-chair of GOLOS Association, there were significant irregularities in the organisation, a central election committee was set up to organise the referendum. Fifty-five local election committees, and 2,279 polling stations were to be established to carry it out, a number of towns refused to hold the referendum. To cover all the registered voters,3.2 million voting ballots needed to be produced

37.
Ukrainian parliamentary election, 2014
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A snap election of the Verkhovna Rada took place on 26 October 2014. Petro Poroshenko, the President of Ukraine, had pressed for early elections since his victory in the presidential election. The July breakup of ruling coalition gave him the right to dissolve the parliament, the voting was not provided in the annexed Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol. The voting also did not reach significant parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts because of the ongoing War in Donbass, because of this,27 out of the 450 seats in the 8th Verkhovna Rada remained unfilled. This election can be called a realigning, ruling in 2010-2014, the Party of Regions did not participate in this election, while its informal successor Opposition Bloc showed modest result with only 9. 43%. For the first time since Ukrainian independence, the Communist Party of Ukraine gained no parliamentary representation, four newly created parties got the highest support in this election, Petro Poroshenko Bloc, Peoples Front, Self Reliance and Opposition Bloc. Since the parallel voting system was used, the allocation of seats is not proportional, for example, the winner in party-list voting Peoples Front got second faction with 82 seats, while Petro Poroshenko Bloc took 123 seats with 21. 82% of votes. The work of the new parliament started on 27 November 2014, on the same day, five factions formed the European Ukraine coalition, Petro Poroshenko Bloc, Peoples Front, Self Reliance, Radical Party and Fatherland. On 2 December the second Yatsenyuk government was approved, according to the election law of November 2011, elections to the Verkhovna Rada must take place at least every five years. That law came into effect with the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election, If the Rada had sat for the maximum allotted time, the next parliamentary election would have occurred on 29 October 2017. Despite this, the president-elect Petro Poroshenko said that he wanted to hold parliamentary elections following his victory in the presidential election on 25 May 2014. At 26 June session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Poroshenko said that he hoped to hold elections in October 2014. The parliamentary coalition that supported the Yatsenyuk Government, formed in the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, If no new coalition formed within thirty days, President Poroshenko would become entitled to dissolve the Rada and to call early parliamentary elections. On the same day as the dissolution, the Sovereign European Ukraine faction submitted a bill to the Rada that called for elections to take place on 28 September 2014. President Poroshenko said, I dont know how to work with a parliament in which a number, whole factions. And this danger is only increasing and he also said that new elections are the best and the most efficient form of lustration of not only the parliament but also the political forces. Poroshenko announced on 25 August that he had called for elections to the Rada to take place on 26 October 2014, in his accompanying television address, he portrayed the elections as necessary to purify the Rada of the mainstay of Viktor Yanukovych. These deputies, Poroshenko said, clearly do not represent the people who elected them, Poroshenko also painted these Rada deputies as responsible for the Dictatorship laws that took the lives of the Heavenly Hundred

38.
Maidan Nezalezhnosti
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Maidan Nezalezhnosti is the central square of Kiev, the capital city of Ukraine. One of the main squares, it is located on Khreshchatyk Street in the Shevchenko Raion. The square has been known under different names, but often it is called simply Maidan. In the 19th century, the square contained buildings of the city council, Maidan is also a regular site for non-political displays and events. Maidan is a Ukrainian word for square, open space, ultimately from Arabic language ميدان maydān, via Turco-Persian transmission, Persian ميدان meydan meaning field, park, open space, the Arabic word originally meant horse-racing ground, hippodrome. Kropyvnytskyi, Kremenchuk and Odessa have Independent Squares named Ploshcha Nezalezhnosti, Independence Square is one of three squares located along Khreshchatyk, close to the northeastern end of the street. It is situated close to European Square, which is the end of Khreshchatyk. Besides Khreshchatyk, which splits the square in half, several other lead to the square. These include Architect Horodecki Street, Institute Street, Michael Street, Kosciol Street, Minor Zhytomyr Street, Sophia Street, Taras Shevchenko Lane, the square itself is a multi-level location. At ground level is the intersection of Khreshchatyk, which splits Institute Street, underneath the square, the Kurenivsko-Chervonoarmiyska Line of the Kiev Metro stretches across with its station Maidan Nezalezhnosti located underground. Until the 10th century, the future site, as well as the rest of Khreshchatyk, was called Perevisyshch. It was located just to the south of the Kiev City, beyond which were located territories of the Cave Monastery along the Dnieper. At the lower end of Sofiivska vulytsia, which led to the High City and those gates are also mentioned in 1151, and around them lived the Polish population of the city, Lacka Sloboda. The Lyadksi Gates were destroyed during the storm of city by the Mongol army of Batu Khan in 1240, sometime during the 18th century, the new Pecherski Gates were erected, they stood until 1833. Until the early 19th century, the area was a vacant ground known as Goat Swamp. In the 1830s, the first wooden dwellings were built on the site, the most famous Ukrainian writer, Taras Shevchenko lived in that area in 1859, in a building between Mala Zhytomyrska and Mykhailivska vulytsia. Until 1871, it was called the Khreshchatitskaya Ploshchad, it was a location for the local market, in 1876 the Kiev City Duma building was built here, and the area became to be known as the Dumskaya Ploshchad. A line from the Kiev tram, the first electric tram built in the Russian Empire reached the square in 1894

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Khreshchatyk
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Khreshchatyk is the main street of Kyiv, Ukraine. The street has a length of 1.3 km and it stretches from the European Square through the Maidan and to Bessarabska Square where the Besarabsky Market is located. The entire street was destroyed during World War II by the retreating Red Army troops. Among prominent buildings that did not survive were the Kiev City Duma, the Kiev Stock Exchange, Hotel Natsional, the street has been significantly renovated during the modern period of Ukraines independence. Today, the street is still significant to administrative and business city organizations, as of 2010, Khreshchatyk is included in the Top 20 of most expensive shopping streets in Europe. The name of Khreshchatyk is believed to be derived from the Slavic word krest or khrest and it lies in a valley that is crossed by several ravines. When looked at from above, the valley resembles a cross, a small river, the Khreshchatyk River, a tributary of Kievs Lybid River, ran along much of the valley, and still runs underground along much of the street. The development of the area started in the 19th century. The ravine was filled and accelerating construction quickly followed, by the middle 19th century, Khreshchatyk was developed as Kievs main thoroughfare in the climate of rapid growth of the city during the Industrial Revolution in Imperial Russia. The street soon became the center of Kievs commercial life, as the city developed into the main commercial center in the Empires south-west. In 1892, the first electric line in the Russian Empire ran in Kiev and by 1894. The street was served by the tram for about 40 years, on May 9,1920, the Polish army under General Rydz-Smigly celebrated their capture of Kiev by a ceremonial parade on Khreshchatyk. They were driven out by the Bolshevik counter-offensive within weeks, between the wars, Khreshchatyk underwent major development and reconstruction. Between 1923 and 1937, the street was named after V. V, vorovsky, an early Bolshevik diplomat assassinated in Switzerland. In the mid-1930s, the lines were deconstructed, and the trams replaced by trolleybuses. During World War II, almost every building on the street was mined with explosives by the retreating Red Army troops, in September 1941, after German troops occupied the city, explosions were set off by radio-controlled fuses from over 400 kilometres away. The demolition of three hundred buildings on Khreshchatyk became the first operation in history where the long-distance radio-controlled explosions were used for military purposes. Much of the historic center of Kiev was demolished

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Lypky
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Lypky is a historic neighborhood of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv located in the administrative Pecherskyi District. The name has derived from a lime tree, Lypky became known only recently since the 19th century. During that time it became known as an elite district. Geographically Lypky is considered to be part of Pechersk, yet it is located between the Old Kyiv neighborhood and the Pechersk neighborhood across the Klov descent and Mechnikov Street, streets of Lypky were the scenes of the most bloody episodes of the Euromaidan revolution

41.
Bankova Street
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Bankova Street is a street in central Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, located in the Lypky neighborhood of the Pechersk District. Most of the street is pedestrianised and closed-off, as it houses the Presidential Administration of Ukraine and various official residences, Bankova Street was first constructed during the 1870s on the estate of Governor-General F. Trepov. During its history, the street was named Tsaredarska, Trepovska, Bankova, Komynistychna, during the World War II was named as Bismark Strasse. The street was renamed again to its historic name, Bankova. The present name comes from the 1840 building of the Kiev Office of the State Bank, today the bank is located at 7 Instytutska Street. The street runs between Instytutska Street and Kruhlouniversitetska Street passing Lyuteranska Street, at Nos 9 and 11 there is located the Presidential Administration of Ukraine and No.10 is the House with Chimaeras. A segment between Luteranska and Kruhlouniversitetska streets has a one way towards Kruhlouniversitetska, from 1905 to around 1946, a tram line ran through the street, connecting the Bessarabska Square near Khreshchatyk and Hrushevsky Street. The southern portion close to the Lutheran Street has limited access, there are a stairs that lead to a small park that is a backyard of House with Chimeraes. The park is at lower grade compared to the Bank street, the area belongs to the Kievenerho where is located a headquarters of the company in a building of the former 8th Kiev Gymnasium. There is information that underneath the Presidential administration building and buildings of the parliamentary committees exists a system of underground passages, galina Savchuk, The Streets of Kiev. 5-7 Bankova street 3 Bankova street

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European Square (Kiev)
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European Square is a square located in what is known as the Old Town or the Upper Town, in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is also located at the end of the Khreschatyk. Other streets connected to the square are Tryokhsvyatytelska Street, Volodymyrskyi Descent, in 2013–14 the square was one of the centres of the EuroMaidan protests. The square was known under at least nine different names during the last two hundred years, originally, the square was called the Horses Square, because its location was used for horse trading. 1806 - Theatre Square, after the 1805–1806 construction of the first theater in Kiev by the architect Andriy Melensky located at the current place of Ukrainian House,1851 - European Square, when the Yevropeysky Hotel was built to the designs of the architect Alexander Vikentievich Beretti. During that time the square was also referred to as Aleksandrovskaya for the same reason,1919 - Third Internationals Square, after the Soviet occupation of Ukraine. Hrushevsky Street Khreshchatyk Volodymyr Descent Three-Saints Street Peters Alley European Square at Kiev History Site // An optimistic avenue in Vokrug Sveta, November,2005

Ukraine
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Ukraine is currently in territorial dispute with Russia over the Crimean Peninsula which Russia annexed in 2014 but which Ukraine and most of the international community recognise as Ukrainian. Including Crimea, Ukraine has an area of 603,628 km2, making it the largest country entirely within Europe and it has a population of about 42.5 million, ma

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Gold Scythian pectoral, or neckpiece, from a royal kurgan in Ordzhonikidze, dated to the 4th century BC

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Flag

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Principalities of Kievan Rus', 1054-1132

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The baptism of the Grand Prince Vladimir led to the adoption of Christianity in Kievan Rus'.

Euromaidan
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The scope of the protests expanded, with many calls for the resignation of President Viktor Yanukovych and his government. The protests led to the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, the situation escalated after the violent dispersal of protesters on 30 November, leading to many more protesters joining. By 25 January 2014, the protests had been fueled by t

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Clockwise from top left: A large EU flag is waved across Maidan on 27 November 2013, opposition activist popular singer Ruslana addresses the crowds on Maidan on 29 November 2013, Pro EU rally on Maidan, Euromaidan on European Square on 1 December, tree decorated with flags and posters, crowds direct hose at militsiya, plinth of the toppled Lenin statue

Ukrainian language
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Ukrainian /juːˈkreɪniən/ is an East Slavic language. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic script, historical linguists trace the origin of the Ukrainian language to the Old East Slavic of the early medieval state of Kievan Rus. After the fall of the Kievan Rus as well as the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, the Modern Ukrainian language has

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Miniature of St Luke from the Peresopnytsia Gospels (1561).

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Ukrainian-speaking world

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The 1921 Soviet recruitment poster. It uses traditional Ukrainian imagery with Ukrainian-language text: "Son! Enroll in the school of Red commanders, and the defense of Soviet Ukraine will be ensured."

Order (honour)
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Modern national orders and orders of merit developed in the 19th century, emerging out of the culture of chivalric orders of the Middle Ages. The modern distinction between orders and decorations is somewhat vague, except that most historic chivalric orders imply a membership in a group, in a few exclusive European orders, membership is or was also

List of people killed during Euromaidan
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This is the list of people killed during Euromaidan events taking place in the fall and winter of 2013–2014. The list contains only confirmed deaths of Euromaidan participants, Ukrainian policemen, there are currently near 130 identified deaths, most of them were civilian protesters. 18 police officers were killed during the clashes. Ukrainian sour

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U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry looks at the photos of some of those killed at Maidan, at the Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv (4 March 2014)

Verkhovna Rada
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The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, often simply Verkhovna Rada or just Rada, is the unicameral parliament of Ukraine. The Verkhovna Rada is composed of 450 deputies, who are presided over by a chairman, the Verkhovna Rada meets in the Verkhovna Rada building in Ukraines capital Kiev. The current parliament is the eighth convocation, in elections to the

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Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Верховна Рада України

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Yulia Tymoshenko, is appointed Prime Minister of Ukraine in the Rada on February 4, 2005.

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Verkhovna Rada building

Ukrainian President
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The president of Ukraine is the Ukrainian head of state. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations, the president is directly elected by the citizens of Ukraine for a five-year term of office, limited to two terms consecutively. The presidents offic

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Incumbent Petro Poroshenko since 7 June 2014

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Presidential Standard

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First President Mykhailo Hrushevskyi (1917-18).

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2nd President Volodymyr Vynnychenko (1918-19).

Petro Poroshenko
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Petro Oleksiyovych Poroshenko is the fifth and current President of Ukraine, in office since 2014. He served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2008 to 2011, from 2008 until 2013, Poroshenko headed the Council of Ukraines National Bank. Outside government, Poroshenko has been a prominent oligarch with a career in acquiring and building assets.

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Petro Poroshenko Петро Порошенко

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Poroshenko and Viktor Yushchenko during the meeting before Mukacheve mayoral election on 16 April 2004

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Poroshenko attending a U.S. Independence Day celebration at the U.S. Embassy in Kiev, 6 July 2005

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Poroshenko at the Russian-Ukrainian international commission meeting in 2009

Lviv
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Lviv, the largest city in western Ukraine and the seventh largest city in the country overall, is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine. Named in honor of the Leo, the eldest son of Rus King Daniel of Galicia. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia from 1272 to 1349, from 1434, it was the regional capital of the Ruthenian Voivo

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View of the Market Square, and Theatre of Opera and Ballet.

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Lviv satellite view (Landsat 5, 14 November 2010)

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The castle of Lwów in 1681, made by Georg Matthäus Vischer (1628–1696)

Belarus
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Its capital and most populous city is Minsk. Over 40% of its 207,600 square kilometres is forested and its strongest economic sectors are service industries and manufacturing. In the aftermath of the 1917 Russian Revolution, Belarus declared independence as the Belarusian Peoples Republic, the Socialist Soviet Republic of Byelorussia became a found

Georgia (country)
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Georgia is a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. The capital and largest city is Tbilisi, Georgia covers a territory of 69,700 square kilometres, and its 2016 population is about 3.72 million. Georgia is a unitary, semi-presidential republic, with the government elected through a representative democracy, during the classical era, several in

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It is said that Georgians were so named because they revered Saint George.

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Flag

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Ancient Georgian states of Colchis and Iberia, 500-400 BC

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Queen Tamar of Georgia presided over the "Golden Age" of the medieval Georgian monarchy. Her position as the first woman to rule Georgia in her own right was emphasized by the title "Mepe mepeta" ("King of Kings").

Ukrayinska Pravda
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Ukrayinska Pravda is a popular Ukrainian Internet newspaper, founded by Georgiy R. Gongadze in April,2000. The Ukrainian government has at times reportedly exerted pressure on the publication to restrict access to freedom of information, along with Hromadske TV and Center UA, Ukrayinska Pravda is part of the MediaHub Kyiv. The newspaper was often f

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Georgiy Gongadze, co-founder and first editor of the Ukrayinska Pravda.

Kyiv Post
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The Kyiv Post is Ukraines oldest English language newspaper. American Jed Sunden founded the Kyiv Post weekly newspaper on Oct.18,1995, the newspaper, which went online in 2002, serves Ukrainian and expatriate readers with a general interest mix of political, business and entertainment coverage. The staff is a team of mainly Ukrainian journalists,

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Web address

Ukrainian crisis
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A prolonged crisis in Ukraine began on 21 November 2013, when then-president Viktor Yanukovych suspended preparations for the implementation of an association agreement with the European Union. This decision resulted in protests by its proponents, known as the Euromaidan. After months of protests, Yanukovych was ousted by the protesters on 22 Febru

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Ukrainian crisis

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Damaged building in Lysychansk, 4 August 2014

Timeline of the Euromaidan
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The Euromaidan was a wave of demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, which began on the night of 21 November 2013 with very large public protests demanding closer European integration. The scope of the protests evolved over subsequent months, culminating in resignation of Azarovs government, protesters also have stated they joined because of th

Domestic responses to the Euromaidan
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Below are the domestic responses to the Euromaidan. I could see very clearly. In his address to the Ukrainian people President Yanukovych stated that he is outraged by those events that took place at night at the Independence Square on 30 November. I condemn the actions that led to violent confrontation and suffering of people, I demand from the Ge

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A group of prototypical titushky by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, Kiev

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Ruslana on stage at Maidan Nezalezhnosti on 18 December 2013

International reactions to the Euromaidan
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Below are the foreign reactions to the Euromaidan. Interfax-Ukraine reported on 9 December that staff of the European Union delegation were present at the rallies on Maidan Nezalezhnosti monitoring developments there, were sticking to that principle, and we do hope that all of the other countries that signed that document do the same. Rasmussen sta

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Ukrainian opposition leaders Petro Poroshenko, Vitali Klitschko and Arseniy Yatsenyuk meeting United States Secretary of State John Kerry at the Munich Security Conference 2014.

1 December 2013 Euromaidan riots
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The day saw the highest numbers of journalists injured by police in a single event since Ukraines independence regain in 1991. Also,1 December became the first instance of a building being occupied by protesters in modern history of the country. Initially,35 people were injured as a result of the raid, including a Reuters cameraman. Most of the pro

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Protesters on Maidan on the night of 30 November

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Flags of Ukraine and the Ukrainian nationalist movement flown on 29 November in Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) before the attack

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Police attacks protesters on 29 November (15:35 LST)

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Tractor assault on Bankova

Vladimir Lenin monument, Kiev
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The Vladimir Lenin monument in Kiev was a statue dedicated to the founder of the Soviet Union in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It became noticed as being involved in the Euromaidan events when it was violently toppled from its pedestal. Later in its place, a toilet was installed atop the pedestal as a metaphorical symbol of state corruption. Over a

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The Lenin statue as it stood on 2 December

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Monument to Lenin in Kiev

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Demonstrators on the plinth of the statue after it was toppled

11 December 2013 Euromaidan assault
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Their tactics were the displacement of frontal peaceful protesters from lightly barricaded camps at the Independence Square and part of Khreshchatyk Street which is near Bessarabska Square. The grounds for the assault were the requirements of public enforcement that arrived at the site and it was found later that such a procedure was illegal, as th

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Police clash with protesters on the night of 10 December

Anti-Maidan
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The Anti-Maidan was a short term gatherings of the pro-government demonstrations driven by the Party of Regions in Ukraine during the course of the Euromaidan movement. These demonstrations supported the Second Azarov Government, President Victor Yanukovych, a pro-government counter protest reportedly gathered 10,000 people on 25 November. Accordin

Vasylkiv terrorists case
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The Vasylkiv terrorists case is an alleged terror plot of three far-right activists trying to blow up a statue of Lenin in the Ukrainian city Boryspil in August 2011. The statue was removed in June 2011, the three suspects were arrested on 22 August 2011. Following the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, on February 24 they were released, allegedly Volodymy

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Main topics

Anti-protest laws in Ukraine
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The Ukrainian anti-protest laws are a group of ten laws restricting freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. The laws are known as the dictatorship laws by Euromaidan activists, non-governmental organizations, scholars. Western nations have criticised the laws for their nature and their ability to significantly curb the rights to protest, free sp

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Hrushevskoho street riots in January 2014 in response to anti-protest laws.

2014 Hrushevskoho Street riots
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During a Euromaidan rally which gathered up to 200,000 protesters, participants marched on the Verkhovna Rada and were met by police cordons. Following a tense stand-off, violence started as police confronted protesters, protesters erected blockades to prevent the movement of government forces. Four protesters were confirmed as having died in clash

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Hrushevskoho street riots in January 2014

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Ukrainian crisis

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200,000 protesters gathering in Kiev as a reaction to anti protest laws in Ukraine

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200,000 people took to the streets against the anti-protest laws on 19 January 2014 in Kiev

2014 Ukrainian revolution
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After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Ukraine endured years of corruption, mismanagement, lack of economic growth, currency devaluation, and problems to secure funding from public markets. Successive Ukrainian governments in the 2000s sought a relationship with the European Union. One of the measures meant to achieve this was an agreement with the

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Crowd in Kiev on 21 February after the peace agreement was signed.

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Ukrainian crisis

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Crowds of protesters gathering at a mass rally on Independence Square in Kiev on 2 February

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A line of riot police in Kiev on 12 February.

2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine
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During the first stage of the unrest, Crimea was invaded and annexed by the Russian Federation after a Russian military intervention, and an internationally criticized Crimean referendum. Protests in Donetsk and Luhansk regions escalated into an armed pro-Russian separatist insurgency, from late 2014, cities outside of the Donbass combat zone, such

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Euromaidan demonstration in Kiev, January 2014

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Map of protests by region, indicating the severity of the unrest at its peak

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Anti-Maidan in Kiev, 14 December 2013

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Pro-Ukrainian demonstration by Crimean Tatars in Crimea, February 2014

Timeline of the 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine
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This is a timeline of the 2014 pro-Russian unrest that has erupted in Ukraine, in the aftermath of the Ukrainian revolution and the Euromaidan movement. They threatened the Ukrainian central authorities that it reserved the right to ask for help from the people of the Russian Federation. Pro-Russian citizens held a rally of up to 5,000 against the

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Pro-Russian protesters remove a Ukrainian flag and replace it with a Russian flag in front of the Donetsk Oblast Regional State Administration building, 1 March 2014

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Pro-Russian activists marching Odessa streets on 30 March 2014

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Police guarding the building of the Kharkiv Oblast State Administration building (RSA), 8 April 2014

Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation
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The Ukrainian territory of Crimea was annexed by the Russian Federation on 18 March 2014. On 23 February 2014, pro-Russian demonstrations were held in the Crimean city of Sevastopol and it led to the other members of the then G8 suspending Russia from the group, then introducing the first round of sanctions against the country. The resolution calls

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Euromaidan in Kiev, 11 December 2013

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Crimea

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Crimean "self-defence" members, 2 March 2014

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" Little green men " in Simferopol, 2 March 2014

War in Donbass
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The War in Donbass is an armed conflict in the Donbass region of Ukraine. Prior to a change of the top leadership in August 2014, during the middle of 2014, Russian paramilitaries were reported to make up between 15% and 80% of the combatants. Crossings occurred both in areas under the control of forces and areas that were not under their control,

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Pro-Russian protesters in Donetsk, 9 March 2014

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Pink areas and red cities were held by DPR/LPR insurgents as of 2015 February. Yellow areas and blue cities were previously held by insurgents, but retaken by the Ukrainian government. Orange settlements were contested. Last updated: 24 February 2015

First Yatsenyuk government
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The first government headed by Arseniy Yatsenyuk was created in Ukraine on 27 February 2014 in the aftermath of the Ukrainian revolution. The cabinet was formed as a coalition of the parties Batkivschyna, UDAR and Svoboda, on 24 July 2014, UDAR and Svoboda and 19 independent MPs had exited from the coalition to pave the way for the early parliament

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First Yatsenyuk Government

Lustration in Ukraine
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They may be excluded for five to ten years. The complete process of checking all civil servants is to be completed in December 2016, elected offices like the President of Ukraine and Peoples Deputies of Ukraine will not be subject to lustration checks. Current judges of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine and the Supreme Court of Ukraine will not b

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Logo of the Ukrainian Lustration Committee

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Monument "Sword of Justice" in Brovary symbolized lustration and the fight against corruption in a city

Ukrainian presidential election, 2014
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Presidential elections were held in Ukraine on 25 May 2014, resulting in Petro Poroshenko being elected President of Ukraine. Originally scheduled to take place on 29 March 2015, the date was changed following the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, Poroshenko won the elections with 54. 7% of the votes. His closest competitor was Yulia Tymoshenko, who emerg

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Nominee

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Voter turnout in Donetsk Oblast in the election

Ukrainian local elections, 2014
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The 2014 Ukrainian local elections took place on May 25,2014, four years after the conclusion of the last local elections, which took place in October 2010. The elections occurred during the crisis in the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution. No Ukrainian mayoral or council elections took place in the Crimea, however, as, in June 2014, the Ve

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Ukrainian local elections, 2014

Kiev local election, 2014
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Local elections in Kiev for the post of Mayor and members of Kiev City Council took place on 25 May 2014 as part of the 2014 Ukrainian local elections. Vitali Klitschko won the election with almost 57% of the votes. The next Kiev local elections were held in October 2015, secretary of the Kiev City Council Halyna Hereha has been acting mayor since

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All 120 seats to the Kiev City Council and Mayor of Kiev

Crimean status referendum, 2014
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The referendum asked local population whether they wanted to join Russia as a federal subject, or if they wanted to restore the 1992 Crimean constitution and Crimeas status as a part of Ukraine. The March 16 referendums available choices did not include keeping the status quo of Crimea, the final date and ballot choices were set only ten days befor

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Request by Council of Ministers of Crimea to the Ukrainian 55th Anti-Aircraft Artillery regiment in Yevpatoria to lay down arms under control of the Russian Black Sea Fleet for the period of the referendum.

Donbass status referendums, 2014
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These referendums sought to legitimise the establishment of the republics, in the context of the rising pro-Russian unrest in the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution. In addition, a counter-referendum on accession to Dnipropetrovsk Oblast was held in some Ukrainian-controlled parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. The results of the separatis

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Separatist billboard in Donetsk, 8 May

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Marked ballots for the Donetsk referendum inside the ballot box.

Ukrainian parliamentary election, 2014
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A snap election of the Verkhovna Rada took place on 26 October 2014. Petro Poroshenko, the President of Ukraine, had pressed for early elections since his victory in the presidential election. The July breakup of ruling coalition gave him the right to dissolve the parliament, the voting was not provided in the annexed Autonomous Republic of Crimea

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423 of 450 seats to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine 226 seats needed for a majority

Maidan Nezalezhnosti
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Maidan Nezalezhnosti is the central square of Kiev, the capital city of Ukraine. One of the main squares, it is located on Khreshchatyk Street in the Shevchenko Raion. The square has been known under different names, but often it is called simply Maidan. In the 19th century, the square contained buildings of the city council, Maidan is also a regul

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View of Maidan Nezalezhnosti from Khreshchatyk Street

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Much of the square was destroyed in the Second World War. [citation needed]

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An early 20th-century Russian postcard depicting the Dumskaya, as it was then called, "the Square". The Kiev City Duma is seen in the centre.

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The Maidan as it was known as "Soviet Square", circa 1930.

Khreshchatyk
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Khreshchatyk is the main street of Kyiv, Ukraine. The street has a length of 1.3 km and it stretches from the European Square through the Maidan and to Bessarabska Square where the Besarabsky Market is located. The entire street was destroyed during World War II by the retreating Red Army troops. Among prominent buildings that did not survive were

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Khreshchatyk, closed to traffic during the weekends, becomes a pedestrian zone.

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Khreshchatyk at the end of the 19th century; the Russian Empire 's first tram line was built in Kiev.

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The City Duma building was heavily damaged during the World War II bombings of Kiev.

4.
Khreshchatyk and its Stalinist architecture seen in the early 1980s.

Lypky
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Lypky is a historic neighborhood of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv located in the administrative Pecherskyi District. The name has derived from a lime tree, Lypky became known only recently since the 19th century. During that time it became known as an elite district. Geographically Lypky is considered to be part of Pechersk, yet it is located between

1.
Sadova Street in Lypky neighborhood

Bankova Street
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Bankova Street is a street in central Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, located in the Lypky neighborhood of the Pechersk District. Most of the street is pedestrianised and closed-off, as it houses the Presidential Administration of Ukraine and various official residences, Bankova Street was first constructed during the 1870s on the estate of Governor-

1.
The Presidential Administration (left) and the House with Chimaeras official residence (right).

2.
1/10 Bank Street (at Institute Street)

3.
2 Bank Street

4.
3 Bank Street

European Square (Kiev)
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European Square is a square located in what is known as the Old Town or the Upper Town, in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is also located at the end of the Khreschatyk. Other streets connected to the square are Tryokhsvyatytelska Street, Volodymyrskyi Descent, in 2013–14 the square was one of the centres of the EuroMaidan protests. The square was